German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius addresses the media with CDU/CSU parliamentary group leader Jens Spahn and Social Democratic Party's (SPD) parliamentary group leader Matthias Miersch at the lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany, November 13, 2025. REUTERS/Lisi Niesner
BERLIN (Reuters) -Germany's coalition partners announced a compromise on Thursday over new rules on military service, a key element in a wider drive to rebuild the country's shrunken armed forces.
The model agreed by Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives and the centre-left Social Democrats would see a hybrid system built around voluntary service with the option of a mandatory call-up if needed.
