Pistorius: Need up to 60,000 more active soldiers

"We are assuming - but this is also just a rule of thumb, to be clear - that we will need around 50,000 to 60,000 more soldiers in the standing forces than we do today. And at the same time, of course, the question will arise: Will the new military service be sufficient over the next few years?" said Pistorius.

NATO wants to greatly expand its military capabilities for deterrence and defense in the face of the ongoing threat from Russia. Secretary General Mark Rutte had said the previous day in Brussels: "We need more resources, troops and capabilities to be prepared for any threat and to fully implement our collective defense plans." Top priority would be given to air and missile defense, long-range weapon systems, logistics and large formations of land forces.

Armed forces already urgently need more personnel

The number of soldiers in the Bundeswehr fell slightly again last year despite more recruitment, while the average age rose. At the end of 2024, there were around 181,150 soldiers, according to the Ministry of Defense. A year earlier, on December 31, 2023, there were still around 181,500 men and women in uniform. However, the declared target had recently been 203,000 active soldiers in the armed forces.

A year ago, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) presented his model for a new military service and also gave figures for the number of soldiers required in the standing forces and the reserve. He named a total of around 460,000 soldiers: Specifically, 203,000 men and women in the standing forces, the 60,000 existing reservists and 200,000 additional reservists that are now required. Military planners assume that the upper limit of 460,000 will be maintained, but that significantly more active soldiers and possibly fewer reservists will be planned.

In the 2+4 treaties, Germany had committed to limiting the number of its soldiers to 370,000. In February 2025, the Bundestag's Scientific Service wrote that the term "personnel strength" was not precisely defined and that the wording suggested "that this only refers to the active, permanently available troop strength, i.e. soldiers in regular service (professional soldiers, temporary soldiers, conscripts)".

New discussion about compulsory military service?

Meanwhile, a new discussion about compulsory military service is foreseeable. The new Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces, Henning Otte (CDU), told the "Tagesspiegel" that "massively" increasing NATO requirements could hardly be met without a partially compulsory military service and a more attractive Bundeswehr. He demanded: "The Ministry of Defense should present a concrete proposal in which the hurdles for a change to the obligation of a certain contingent of young people are not too high."