Lithuanian army needs permanent conscription, not 5-year fix-ups, opposition leader says

“In order to have a reserve, we need to have a permanent conscription system,” he said at a conference on army reserve at the parliament on Friday.

Kubilius, Lithuania former prime minister, of the conservative Homeland Union, emphasized the need to avoid short-term strategies. In his words, the current scheme to reintroduce the mandatory military service for five years will not solve the reserve problem.

“There is no chance of improvement over five years. (Russian President Vladimir) Putin will stay on for another 20 years,” said the MP.

“Now, in five years and in 30 years conscripts will help us solve the problem of mobilization reserve. We cannot do this without conscripts,” Kubilius stressed.