Next year, France will resume limited military service with 3,000 volunteers.

A limited form of conscription is to be reintroduced in France in response to growing fears of conflict with Russia.

More than 25 years after conscription was phased in, the project will see young men and women volunteer for 10 months of military training.

“The only way to avoid danger is to prepare for it,” President Emmanuel Macron said as he announced the plan at an infantry base near Grenoble in southeastern France. “We need to mobilise, mobilise the nation to defend itself, be ready and respect them.”

The new “national service” will be rolled out gradually from next summer, mainly for 18- and 19-year-olds, who will receive at least €800 (£700) a month.

“In this uncertain world where right can triumph, the war is in the present,” Macron said. He added: “The armed forces will benefit from motivated young French men and women:” This is an act of confidence in our youth.”

Initially, the number will be limited to 3,000 next year, but by 2035 the total should increase to 50,000.

France currently has around 200,000 military personnel and another 47,000 security forces. The new scheme should introduce a three-tier structure that involves professionals, conservationists, and volunteers.

The change has brought France in line with other European countries that have introduced military service schemes with different parameters due to fears of Russian aggression.

Belgium and the Netherlands introduced a voluntary military service, and Germany is planning something similar.

Just this month, Belgium’s Ministry of Defence sent letters to 17-year-olds inviting them to volunteer for around €2,000 (£1,750) a month.

Further east, Lithuania and Latvia have compulsory schemes, with cadets selected by lottery. Sweden, which recently joined NATO, has introduced nine to 15 months of military service with selection on merit.

Some European countries, such as Finland and Greece, have never banned conscription, while the Swiss will vote on Sunday to replace compulsory service for men with compulsory civilian duty.

Other countries, including the UK and Spain, have no plans to reintroduce it at this time.

French military chiefs are largely in favour of the new initiative, which they hope will create a pool of trained personnel who can back up professional soldiers and replace them in non-frontline tasks.

They also hope that many volunteers will maintain leadership roles throughout their military careers.

“The new military service moves us in the direction of hybridisation of the armed forces,” said Thomas Giseloud, president of the National Assembly’s defence committee. “We went too far in the direction of all the professionals.”

The threat of standing up to Russia has become part of France’s national discourse, if ill-defined. The government has regularly raised the alarm over events under the radar or attempts by Moscow to poison Roy through social media.

Recently, the newly appointed chief of staff, General Fabian Mendon, took the alarm to a new level when he said that French military planning was built around the assumption of a conflict with Russia in the next three or four years.

He told a gathering of more mayors last week that what France lacks is a spirit of sacrifice, urging them to prepare for the possibility of “losing children” to war.

Widely condemned, the government also viewed the remarks as unhelpful, with Macron assuring the country late last week that there were no plans to send young recruits to fight in Ukraine.

Polls show a large majority of the public supports voluntary military service. An Albee poll this week found 73% supported the move. Young people—aged 25-34—were the least supportive, but this age group was also the majority at 60%.

In a BBC random test on Paris streets, a similar picture emerged.

“It’s good,” said 22-year-old student Louis. “It may help make the military bigger, but it’s a way to love your nation more.”

Another student, Alan, said, “In military service you meet people from everywhere. “You learn new ways of looking at things. You learn to talk, trust, and get along with other people.”

“From what I’ve read in the papers, our military isn’t that powerful – so if we have to prepare for the future, maybe it’s a good idea,” said set designer Brigitte.

But Lawley, a 21-year-old shop assistant, disagreed: “I think there are more important issues. It’s sad that the president isn’t really interested in young people—their mental health, their financial situation—and instead is focusing on this military service.”

It was only in 1996 that then President Jacques Chirac decided to abolish military service as part of the peace gains from the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Compulsory military training for young people had been a part of national life since the French Revolution, which gave rise to the idea of ​​citizen soldiers.

A law of 1798 read in effect: “Every Frenchman is a soldier and bound to defend the fatherland.” And after the defeat of Prussia in 1871, Republican leader Léon Gambetta said, “When a citizen is born in France, he is born a soldier.”

The Algerian War of Independence was the last conflict fought by French troops, with more than 12,000 casualties.

By the 1990s, service was reduced to 10 months, with civilian work options instead.

Since the last draft was passed in 2001, there have been numerous, half-hearted attempts to retain something of the spirit of military service, which proponents say fosters a sense of harmony and equality.

Lycée (high school) students still have to attend a defence and citizenship day, where they are lectured on rights and duties and participate in a flag-raising ceremony.

In his first term, Macron also instituted a universal national service—a four-week course of civic responsibilities and practical training—that was supposed to build national solidarity after the terrorist attacks of the 2010s. But the scheme was seen as an expensive and ill-advised form of holiday camp and was abandoned earlier this year.

While the new scheme appears to be enjoying a broadly favourable reception, there are still questions about its financing – a debt crisis looms over the country and parliament, and parliament is still unable to approve the 2026 budget.