PARIS — This week Emmanuel Macron announced that France will launch a fresh, voluntary military-service programme targeted at 18- and 19-year-olds starting in the summer of 2026, a move driven by what he called “accelerating threats” on the European continent.
The new initiative marks a clear shift away from the old model: conscription, which was abolished in 1996, will not return. Instead, the plan offers young volunteers a ten-month service within France’s borders (mainland and overseas territories), beginning with a month of basic training and weapons-handling, followed by nine months of service in regular units.
Participants will be paid, provided with uniforms and equipment, and can choose after completion whether to return to civilian life, join the reserves, or continue full-time in the armed forces. The first batch is expected to include about 3,000 recruits in 2026; the government aims to scale the scheme to 10,000 per year by 2030 and as many as 50,000 annually by 2035, depending on evolving security conditions.
Macron presented the initiative during a visit to the 27th Mountain Infantry Brigade stationed in Varces, in the French Alps, stressing that the programme aims at strengthening national resilience rather than preparing for foreign deployment. “Volunteers will serve only on French soil,” he clarified.
The decision comes against the background of shifting geopolitics in Europe. With the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and a renewed sense of vulnerability after decades of relative stability, France, along with other European nations, is recalibrating its defence readiness. Macron argued that the armed forces must reflect this changing reality.
Macron also stressed that this is not a return to universal conscription. The old model, which required mandatory service for all young men (and effectively sidelined many), would have meant recruiting hundreds of thousands annually, a scale the government has firmly ruled out.
Still, his remarks follow a controversial statement by Fabien Mandon, the head of France’s armed forces, who recently warned that the country may have to accept “losing its children” if conflict with Russia escalates. Macron swiftly attempted to soften the tone, clarifying that the new service would not be used to deploy young volunteers to Ukraine or any active conflict zone.
The plan enjoys broad public support, especially among youth aged 18–25, according to officials. It is seen as a way to reconnect young people with the values of civic duty, national defence, and solidarity, even as Europe faces difficult choices on security, sovereignty and collective responsibility.
With this move, France aims to forge a new military model, combining volunteers, reservists, and active soldiers, to meet an unpredictable future, without reviving the mass conscription of the past.