Mandatory military service is highly unlikely, but there is a concern at the Ministry of National Defence (MApN) for voluntary military service, the minister of National Defense, Angel Tilvar, said on Monday.
„Mandatory military service is out of the question. There is no discussion about this at the moment. Regarding voluntary military service (…) there is a need for a reserve, every army poses the problem of reserve. There was a period when, on contractual basis, receiving 30% of the salary, two weeks a year there was a certain training and there was a selection and a competition in which this reserve was ensured. At the moment, there is a concern at the ministry level for this voluntary military service, which comes to satisfy the need for reserves, because in every country in the world there is also this concern, to ensure the reserve of the army,” Tilvar said for Euronews.
He recalled that there is a project regarding a military internship of several months, for people between 18 and 35 years old, who will receive a bonus at the end. The purpose of this project is to have „a reserve”, the minister pointed out.
„The Romanian army went from over 320,000 people, it reached the situation of having around 80 (thousands – ed.n), about 75,000 soldiers, about 14,000 or 15,000 contractual personnel and I think 407 or 408 civil servants. So, from a numerical point of view, the army has decreased, the operational needs are what they are, they are also motivated by the situation we are in, because it is a situation that has not been in Europe for a very long time,” the minister explained.
He emphasized that Romania „is not in danger of war, it is not in danger of being attacked”.
„This does not mean that a state like Romania, a serious state, a member of an important political-military alliance, the most important in the history of mankind, should not be in agreement and in line with what is happening in other armies from this point out of view,” added Tilvar.
The minister pointed out that last year, almost 7,000 employees left the system. „This must be compensated somehow,” said Angel Tilvar.
Source: AGERPRES
