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Wednesday, 24.04.2024, 08:29
Lithuania's conscripts to be selected for service by lotteries
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According to the chief of defence, battalions are poorly manned at the moment as only two of them have more than 50% of the required number of troops. Therefore, a critical shortage of troops is a real threat to the state's security.
Around 3,000 conscripts are planned to be called throughout the third and fourth quarters of 2015. Around 16,000 conscripts will be drafted in the next 5 years: they will later become the army's reserve.
Major General Zukas says that conscripts will be selected randomly – by lotteries, as in the US during the Vietnam War.
Compulsory military service for 9 months will be applied to healthy, educated men with no previous convictions between the ages of 19 to 27. Failure to show up to conscription will lead to criminal responsibility.
If Lithuania's parliament approves the changes made by the State Defence Council, the first conscripts should be brought back to the armed forces already this September.
Lithuania's army has around 13,000 troops at the moment.
As reported, on the basis of the decision made by the State Defence Council on February 24, Lithuanian Minister of National Defence Juozas Olekas assigned to the chief of defence to begin preparations for draft to the compulsory basic military service.
"Changes in geopolitical situation and insufficient manning of units of the Lithuanian Armed Forces leads to a temporary reintroduction of conscription. The development of the Lithuanian Armed Forces will remain directed at professional military service, however, today we lack professional soldiers so a compound model will be introduced for the coming 5 years," Minister Olekas said, the Ministry of National Defence said.
The decision on the compulsory basic military service is yet to be approved by Lithuania's parliament.
The permanent compulsory basic military service would apply to conscripts between the age of 19 and 26 (inclusive) and to graduates of higher education institutions of the age of up till 38 (inclusive). The compulsory basic military service will be performed for a period of 9 months.
The initial plan is to call up 3,000-3,500 young people annually.
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