A poll released in Germany on Thursday showed that 55 percent of respondents reject the resumption of compulsory military service, an eight percentage point increase compared to 2021.
Amid the increasingly tense international security situation in recent years, particularly the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, calls for the resumption of conscription have been growing louder in the German political circle.
In response, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius recently proposed adding 50,000 to 60,000 active-duty soldiers in the Bundeswehr, the federal armed forces, to meet NATO's new round of defense capability requirements. This move is widely seen as Germany's largest military expansion in the post-war period and marks a potential fundamental shift in Germany's defense strategy.
"I am extremely worried about the current situation and hold a critical attitude. I do not agree with militarization practices, including military expansion and increased investment in military equipment," said Bernd Einmeier, expert of ThinkTank Networks GmbH and Co.
Germany established a special fund of 100 billion euros (112 billion U.S. dollars) in 2022. However, some critical voices have pointed out that in the process of expanding its military equipment, a large proportion of Germany's huge military expenditure has actually gone to U.S. military industrial enterprises rather than being used for the modernization of its own defense system.
"The 100 billion euro special defense fund we have established is actually an economic stimulus plan for the United States, because most of the money is for purchasing weapons from the United States, to buy weapons for war and destruction. In my opinion, every euro is a fundamental mistake," said Einmeier.
55 pct German respondents against resumption of compulsory military service: poll
55 pct German respondents against resumption of compulsory military service: poll
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's official visit to China signals a policy shift towards building a more pragmatic relationship between the two countries, according to a Canadian researcher.
Carney arrived in Beijing on Wednesday to begin an official visit to China through Saturday, which marks the first trip by a Canadian Prime Minister to the country in eight years.
Robert Hanlon, director and principal investigator of Canada and the Asia Pacific Policy Project (CAPPP) at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, told the China Global Television Network (CGTN) that Carney's visit indicates Canada is recalibrating its strategic perception of China, which could cement the foundation for the country's economic diversification efforts and boost the development of bilateral cooperation.
"I think it's a clear message that he has moved Canada's strategy to a much more pragmatic, interest-based, -focused relationship with our trading partners, moving away from values-based narratives that we might have heard on previous governments. Canada has spoken about moving from what the Prime Minister's Office is calling "from reliance to resilience", and that means diversifying our economies and our trade everywhere in the world. And so China being our second largest trading partner, it makes perfect sense for our PM to head to Beijing," he said.
The scholar also noted the huge cooperation potential between the two sides in economic and trade fields, citing Canada's efforts to step up shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) and the planned construction of an oil pipeline in Alberta which aims to increase export access to Asian markets. "Canada and China both share tremendous economic opportunities together and so finding ways to enhance our exports. Canada specifically looking to build out its LNG and oil, kind of export market. We know Canada is a major producer of critical minerals and China is a buyer. And so there's a lot of synergy between that kind of those kind of markets," he said.
Canadian PM's visit to China paves way for more pragmatic trade ties: scholar
