France has not had mandatory military service for almost thirty years, and the country’s entire army is professional.

However, President Emmanuel Macron plans to restore mandatory military service in a revised form, as Russia’s stance has become “much more aggressive” than before. He stated this in an interview with RTL radio.

Details will be provided in the coming days.

For now, the following is known about this initiative: according to La Tribune, the new volunteer service will last 10 months and will apply to both men and women. This will form a French reserve. Volunteers will be paid between 900 and 1,000 euros per month. In the first year, France expects to have 2,000 to 3,000 conscripts. And by 2030 to 2035, their number is expected to reach 10,000 to 50,000.

Currently, France has about 205,000 active servicepersons, but only 47,000 reservists, whose number is projected to reach 80,000 by 2030.