Sixteen years later, Croatia will reinstate compulsory military service. From January 1 next year, conscription for all youth over the age of 18 should come into effect. Defense Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ivan Anushic said that "everything is ready", but the political procedure is still awaited.
"Between two and three months, the service will continue. We increased the allowances, now they are 900 euros per month," he said, quoted by Croatian Radio and Television.
The idea is to retain as many young people as possible in the defense system. According to preliminary forecasts, 15,000 people should be trained annually.
"The security challenges are such that they place an obligation on all of us to consider how to activate this model," the deputy prime minister said.
In Croatia, compulsory military service was abolished in 2008.
"This decision was correct at that time. New circumstances and the future require new decisions," emphasized the Chairman of the Defense Committee in the Croatian Parliament, Arsen Bauk.
For the youth who refuse to take up arms, there is another plan.
"They will carry shovels and hoes. They will carry sacks when embankments are built against possible floods, they will carry some other things - they will not have to carry weapons, but they will have to fulfill their duty to the state," explained Anusic.
"This part of the training will be the task of the civil defense system. They will be taught, as they say, life skills. When there is some risk, you need to know how to help the person next to you and yourself," Damir pointed out. Trut, director of the Directorate of Civil Protection.
The Croatian General Corps emphasizes the importance of training young people in self-defense.
"The training will include providing first aid, responding to natural disasters and accidents, to recognizing different forms of unconventional threats and challenges," said retired Lt. Gen. Mladen Kruljats. | BGNES
