YOUNG MEN FACE FINES FOR IGNORING MILITARY QUESTIONNAIRE

BERLIN, OCTOBER 21 /SRNA/ – Young German men who fail to complete a questionnaire assessing their readiness to serve in the armed forces, as required under a new law, will face fines of up to 250 euros, the German Defense Ministry announced.

Germany reintroduced a military service program last year as part of efforts to increase troop numbers. Since the beginning of this year, 18-year-olds have been receiving questionnaires to assess their willingness to serve. Women may complete the forms voluntarily, while men are required to return them within four weeks.

Those who fail to do so will receive a reminder giving them an additional two weeks to respond before being fined.

According to the German Defense Ministry, 492,800 questionnaires had been sent out by September 30, including 253,000 to men and 239,800 to women.

"About 96 per cent of men returned the questionnaires on time," the ministry said, adding that the number of troops had increased by 4,500 in September compared with the same period last year.

The new Military Service Act was introduced last year with the aim of increasing the number of active-duty troops from 180,000 to 260,000, alongside an additional reserve force of up to 200,000. If the voluntary program fails to produce the required number of troops, the Government has said compulsory military service could be reinstated.

The German Defense Ministry said the armed forces currently had around 186,000 active-duty personnel.