Lithuania’s Defence Ministry has drawn up conscription reforms, proposing that the current nine-month service could be shortened to six months in some cases. The draft also foresees that students in higher education, as well as 17-year-olds finishing high school, would be called up.
"Students already have a lot on their plate, especially those who have to work during their studies,” said Paulius Vaitiekus, president of the Lithuanian Students' Union.
If the reforms are approved, young people could face becoming part-time students and part-time soldiers. "The study process can suffer," added Vaitiekus.
Under the proposed reforms, drafted students could also choose to do the service "on the weekends or during the summer holidays,” said Deputy Defence Minister Žilvinas Tomkus, This would also allow Lithuanians studying abroad to serve, he added.
Students could also join the part-time territorial units, the National Defence Volunteer Force (KASP), or enrol on the three-year, part-time junior officers training programme.
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"[The aim is] to get as large a proportion [of young men] as possible into military readiness," said Tomkus.
Lithuania has been considering introducing universal conscription, which would mean every young man who finishes school would be called up.
However, there is no consensus on the issue, according to Tomkus. Instead, the proposed military reforms would boost the military reserve without having to adopt universal conscription, he added. The ministry estimates that the active reserve would increase to around 47,000 in 2030.
But another contentious proposal is to draft 17-year-olds who would join the service immediately after finishing school.
"This would hinder the academic process and aspirations,” said Emilis Mikulskis, vice president of the Union of School Students.
However, the president of the Lithuanian Youth Council, Domantas Katelė, welcomed the proposals.
"I would see it as a positive enough step toward [...] universal conscription, which will finally allow us to do away with the 'lottery' principle," Katelė told LRT TV.
The ministry proposes tripling pay for those who choose the longer, nine-month service.
"[Currently], a person receives the basic soldier's course in six months, followed by qualification as a specialist or a unit commander and so on" for the following three months, said MP Arvydas Pocius, a retired general and now member of the parliamentary Committee on Security and Defence (NSGK).
People who are qualified in professions that the military lacks could serve for three months, or two if they don’t meet the health requirements but still want to serve.
But Retired Colonel Vaidotas Malinionis says the proposed system is too confusing.
"I have looked at the reform itself and it seems to me to be very complicated, complicated because there are many points, many categories of conscripts." Malinionis commented.
Aleksandras Matonis, a defence expert and journalist, criticised the proposal to shorten the service.
"Nine months is the very minimum to train [...] a simple infantryman. Nowhere in the world is it possible to produce a fully-fledged soldier after nine months,” he said. “We will get to the point where we will have 65% of well-trained soldiers in the reserve and 35% of ‘semi-finished’ soldiers.”
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