On Wednesday, the Latvian parliament Saeima decided to reintroduce compulsory military service in the country, Latvia’s public broadcaster LSM has reported.
The draft law on the State Defence Service and related bills were passed with 68 Latvian MPs voting in favour and 11 against.
It is planned that the first conscripts will start their service on July 1 this year.
The first draft will be voluntary, but as of January 1, 2024, random selection will apply. The law foresees criminal liability if a person avoids service.
Males born after January 1, 2004, are subject to mandatory service and must start service within one year of turning 18. If they are still in school, they must start service within one year after graduation.
Males and females aged 18 to 27 can also apply for the service voluntarily.
The compulsory service can be done in one of three ways: 11 months in the National Armed Forces or the National Guard; five years in the National Guard, with at least 21 individual training days per year and 7 collective training days per year; finishing a five-year education university program of a Reserve Lieutenant.
Latvia repealed its mandatory military service law in 2007. The country’s Defense Minister Ināra Mūrniece says that mandatory conscription is Latvia’s answer to the Russian aggression in Ukraine.
“Without a morally stable and prepared society, it’s impossible to counter the aggressor,” she said.
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