On the occasion of “Conscription Day”, which takes place annually on January 20, Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner opened the conference with Brigadier Erich Cibulka on the topic of “Ring of Fire – Europe’s Challenges” at the House of Industry in Vienna. Afterwards, military experts discussed Europe’s challenges and the position of the European Union in the current geopolitical situation.
Defense Minister Klaudia Tanner: “Compulsory military service is the basis for everything. The deteriorating global security situation shows how important it is to have a functioning military national defense. This is also clearly demonstrated by current discussions in other countries that are considering reintroducing compulsory military service. Only with a stable basis can the threats and scenarios of the 21st century be overcome.”
Defense Minister Tanner continued: “Without the cooperation with our associations, soldiers and friends of national defense, including the ‘Wehrhaftes Österreich’ platform, our armed forces with its compulsory military service would not have the status it has today. We must realize that compulsory military service is absolutely essential for the protection of our state.” Brigadier General Walter Feichtinger from the Center for Strategic Analysis gave a presentation on the current situation and the actual situation in geopolitics as the first item on the agenda. Lieutenant General Steven L. Basham, Deputy Commander of the United States European Command, presented the transatlantic perspective. As part of the program, Captain Lars Schumann, Deputy Cabinet Director of the Military Committee of the European Union, also spoke about the perspective of the European Union. Finally, General Rudolf Striedinger, Chief of the General Staff, explained the Austrian perspective. https://militaeraktuell.at/32566-2/ In his concluding remarks, the Chairman of the umbrella organization, Brigadier Erich Cibulka, welcomed the Defense Minister’s “Reconstruction Plan 2032+”. He called it a necessary rehabilitation cure after the armed forces had previously been in intensive care. He appealed to the representatives of all political parties to overcome the personnel bottlenecks in the armed forces in addition to the material components in the next legislative period. To the applause of those present, he called for a return to compulsory military exercises in line with the “Position Paper 2023”. The “Day of Conscription” was launched by the “Armed Forces Austria” platform in 2014 and has been held annually ever since. In 2024, the “Day of Conscription” was held for the eleventh time.
Here for further army news.
