Latvia’s defense minister wants to conscript women by 2028

Latvia should make conscription mandatory for women, the Baltic country’s defense minister said Tuesday.
“Moving toward comprehensive national defense, I support the mandatory conscription of women into the national defense service. 2028 could be the optimal time to start it,” Andris Sprūds posted on X, reiterating his comments in an interview with local media earlier Tuesday.
Since Russian President Vladimir Putin launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, European countries have pushed to build up their militaries, both in terms of personnel and weaponry.
Latvia, which shares a border with Russia, reintroduced conscription only last year, after abolishing it in 2006. The country, which has a population of less than 2 million, selects conscripts at random and aims to have 4,000 soldiers by 2028.
The Baltic nation was one of the last countries near Russia to bring back conscription, as Sweden and Lithuania decided to do so shortly after Moscow illegally annexed Ukraine’s Crimea in 2014.
While European capitals are looking to hire and retain personnel for their armed forces, mandatory conscription for women remains rare. In March, Denmark said it planned to introduce female conscription, becoming only the third European country to move in that direction after Norway and Sweden.
Mandatory conscription for women “won’t happen today or tomorrow,” Sprūds told Latvian TV, highlighting political and technical hurdles that need to be overcome.
By 2028, “there is homework to be done: a public debate, the improvement of the infrastructure of the service, and the provision of materiel and equipment tailored specifically to women,” he explained on X.
Earlier this year, Latvia approved a 12-year army development plan that includes guidance for industry on areas of investment according to capability priorities; more reservists; and the development of military infrastructure.