CNN
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European countries should “absolutely” be introducing conscription to combat the threat of Russian aggression, Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs said Sunday, as Europe grows increasingly concerned about the trajectory of the war in Ukraine.
Latvia reintroduced compulsory military service for adult males on January 1 last year, having abolished it in 2006. The Baltic country shares a 180-mile border with Russia to its east and is particularly vulnerable to Russian aggression.
European leaders met on Thursday in Brussels for emergency talks on the Ukraine war and European defense, vowing to rearm the continent after the United States threatened to rip up 80 years of security guarantees.
Asked if European partners should be following Latvia’s decision to reintroduce mandatory military service, Rinkēvičs told Sky News: “Yes… seeing what is happening in the world, the decision that we took, and yes indeed, we had quite a discussion back in 2022 and that decision was taken by the Parliament.”
“Many other European countries need to follow that,” he added.
Asked again if he thinks other European countries should take decisions similar to that of Latvia in terms of defense spending and conscription, Rinkēvičs said “absolutely.”
Several European countries halted mandatory conscription after the end of the Cold War, but a number of nations – particularly in Scandinavia and the Baltics – have reintroduced it in recent years, largely because of the Russian threat.
Failure to enlist can result in fines or even jail time in some countries.
Rinkēvičs told Sky News that there had also been discussion in his country about whether there is a need to introduce conscription for women.
“Currently, that is not a decision that has been taken,” he said. “There is not any legal obligation for that… This is a debate but there are no decisions taken.”
The president added that he understood that “people are a little bit nervous” about the situation, but said that “of course, a strong reassurance is one thing, another thing is the real action that is being taken by the Latvian government, by other European governments, to make sure that we all get stronger.”
Radina Gigova contributed to this report.