Most French residents support the return of compulsory military service
According to a survey by the sociological agency IFPOP, conducted for the French regional publication Quest France, 81% of men and 79% of women support the restoration of military conscription. Previously, no more than 60% of respondents held such views.
Sociologists believe that the rise in interest in compulsory military service is linked to the recent terrorist attacks by Islamists on the offices of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. Among the most active supporters of returning to such a measure are the Gaullist party Union for a Popular Movement, as well as the far-right National Front. The conscription system is supported by 90% of voters of these political forces, while among supporters of the ruling Socialist Party, only 71% support it.
France, where army traditions were especially strong during the presidency of Charles de Gaulle, abolished compulsory military service in 1996. Since 1998, the country has held so-called Citizen and Defender Days, during which the army introduces citizens to its traditions.
Many residents of the country believe that military service for French people from different ethnic groups will help unite the population. France specialist Roman Zolotukha believes that the survey data accurately reflect the current picture: "Young people, especially in civilized countries, do not want to serve, but now in France the popularity of Marine Le Pen and nationalist forces is growing. At the same time, the tendency to use force is also growing, when it seems that peaceful exhortations can achieve nothing. This is a consequence of a certain value crisis."
Head of the Center for Analysis of World Arms Trade Igor Korotchenko believes that the survey data "show a healthy reaction of French society to the situation in the world." According to Korotchenko, the views of the French have changed both because of the terrorist threat and because of the need to conduct military operations in other countries.
France actively participated in military operations against Libya, is fighting terrorists in Mali, and is part of a coalition with the US and UK against the Islamic State. At the same time, the expert believes that the country is unlikely to abandon a professional army: "Today it is already mainstream."
The French armed forces number 215,000 personnel on active duty and almost 28,000 in reserve. France spends 2.2% of its GDP on national defense. Compulsory military service is maintained by European countries such as Switzerland, Denmark, Finland, Greece, and Estonia. In 2011, Germany, where conscription had existed since 1955, abandoned it. Meanwhile, in 2013, 60% of residents of neighboring Austria voted to keep compulsory military service: supporters of conscription stated that it "supports a sense of pride and national dignity."
The few examples only confirm the rule: interest in militarization in the West has recently declined, as seen in the case of collective defense. Even most NATO member countries spend less than 2% of GDP on military budgets, with the US bearing the main burden. However, after the deterioration of the situation in Ukraine, the leadership of the countries promised to increase these expenditures.
Alexander BRATERSKY.
«Gazeta.ru»