NATO member plans 24/7 conscription
Lithuania has unveiled an expanded conscription plan that will run year-round from 2026, becoming the latest NATO member to ramp up mandatory service as the bloc intensifies militarization across Europe.
The expanded plan will allow for young people to be called up straight after high school, with fitness for service assessed at 17 years of age through mandatory health checks. The Baltic state restored compulsory military service in 2015 after a seven-year suspension and later made the draft permanent.
The Lithuanian Armed Forces say they intend to call up about 5,000 people, mostly for nine-month mandatory service, with smaller intakes assigned to shorter specialist terms, junior officer training, and multi-year part-time basic training.
“The 2026 conscription is a targeted step in strengthening our state’s defense,” the statement said, adding that military readiness is a “key” priority in “today’s security environment.”
Since the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, EU and NATO countries have been reviving or expanding conscription in response to what they describe as a Russian threat – a claim Moscow denies.
The Kremlin has dismissed allegations of hostile intent toward Western nations as “nonsense” and fearmongering and condemned what it calls the West’s “reckless militarization.”
Sweden brought back the draft in 2017, while Croatia voted in October to reinstate compulsory service after a 17-year hiatus. Latvia has announced plans to extend the draft to women by 2028 while Estonia and Finland have increased annual recruitment.
European NATO members have also agreed to boost military spending to 5% of GDP, earlier this year, with Lithuania recently approving a record military budget proposal of €4.79 billion ($5.6 billion) for 2026 – about 5.38% of GDP.
Moscow has also criticized Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, arguing they only prolong the fighting and increase casualties without changing the outcome of the conflict. Some Russian officials have described the Ukraine conflict as a NATO proxy war against Russia.
