Conscription is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day under various names. The modern system of near-universal national conscription for young men dates to the French Revolution in the 1790s, where it became the basis of a very large and powerful military. Most European nations later copied the system in peacetime, so that men at a certain age would serve 1–8 years on active duty and then transfer to the reserve force.
The Latvian National Armed Forces, or NBS, are the armed forces of Latvia. Latvia's defense concept is based on a mobile professional rapid response force and reserve segment that can be called upon relatively fast for mobilization should the need arise. The National Armed Forces consists of Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force and National Guard. Its main tasks are to protect the territory of the State; participate in international military operations; and to prevent threats to national security.
The Republic of China Armed Forces, also known as the ROC Armed Forces are the armed forces of the Republic of China (ROC) that once ruled Mainland China and now currently restricted to its territorial jurisdictions of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu Islands. They consist of the Army, Navy, Air Force and Military Police Force. The military is under the civilian control of the Ministry of National Defense, a cabinet-level agency overseen by the Legislative Yuan.
Military service is service by an individual or group in an army or other militia, air forces, and naval forces, whether as a chosen job (volunteer) or as a result of an involuntary draft (conscription).
In the United States, military conscription, commonly known as the draft, has been employed by the U.S. federal government in six conflicts: the American Revolutionary War, the American Civil War, World War I, World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. The fourth incarnation of the draft came into being in 1940, through the Selective Training and Service Act; this was the country's first peacetime draft. From 1940 until 1973, during both peacetime and periods of conflict, men were drafted to fill vacancies in the U.S. Armed Forces that could not be filled through voluntary means. Active conscription in the United States ended in 1973, when the U.S. Armed Forces moved to an all-volunteer military. However, conscription remains in place on a contingency basis; all male U.S. citizens, regardless of where they live, and male immigrants, whether documented or undocumented, residing within the United States, who are 18 through 25 are required to register with the Selective Service System. United States federal law also continues to provide for the compulsory conscription of men between the ages of 17 and 44 who are, or who have made a declaration of intention to become, U.S. citizens, and additionally certain women, for militia service pursuant to Article I, Section 8 of the United States Constitution and 10 U.S. Code § 246.
The Federal Republic of Germany had conscription for male citizens between 1956 and 2011. On 22 November 2010, the German Minister of Defence proposed to the government to put conscription into abeyance on 1 July 2011. The constitution, however, retains provisions that would legalize the potential reintroduction of conscription.
Since 1914, Greece has had mandatory military service (conscription) of 12 months in the Army, Navy and the Air Force for men between the age of 19 to 45. Citizens discharged from active service are normally placed in the Reserve and are subject to periodic recall of 1–10 days at irregular intervals.
The Republic of China Military Police also known as the ROC Military Police and retroactively as the Chinese Military Police or Chinese MP but unofficially as the Taiwanese Military Police or Taiwanese MP is a military police body under the Ministry of National Defense of Taiwan. Unlike military police in many other countries, the ROCMP is a separate branch of the ROC Armed Forces. ROCMP is responsible for protecting government leaders from assassination or capture, guarding Taiwan's strategic facilities, and counterintelligence against enemy infiltrators, spies, and saboteurs.
A reservist is a person who is a member of a military reserve force. They are otherwise civilians, and in peacetime have careers outside the military. Reservists usually go for training on an annual basis to refresh their skills. This person is usually a former active-duty member of the armed forces, and they remain a reservist either voluntarily, or by obligation. In some countries such as Israel, Norway, Finland, Singapore, and Switzerland, reservists are conscripted soldiers who are called up for training and service when necessary.
Bing is the rank usually held by enlisted personnel in some East Asian militaries. The ranks are used in both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China on Taiwan, and both North and South Korea. The rank name is based on one of the four ancient occupations.
A military reserve force is a military organization whose members (reservists) have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional manpower. Reserve forces are generally considered part of a permanent standing body of armed forces, and allow a nation to reduce its peacetime military expenditures and maintain a force prepared for war. During peacetime, reservists typically serve part-time alongside a civilian job, although most reserve forces have a significant permanent full-time component as well. Reservists may be deployed for weeks or months-long missions during peacetime to support specific operations. During wartime, reservists may be kept in service for months or years at a time, although typically not for as long as active duty soldiers.
Since the Israeli Declaration of Independence in 1948, fixed-term military service has been compulsory in Israel. The draft laws of the Israel Defense Forces only apply to citizens who are Israeli Jews, Druze, and Circassians. As the Druze and Circassian communities are less populous, their women are exempted from the draft laws altogether. Women from the Jewish majority are not exempted from the draft laws, but serve for slightly shorter terms than their male counterparts. Israel does not conscript non-Druze Arab citizens of Israel, though their men and women may enlist voluntarily.
Conscription in Russia is a 12-month draft, which is mandatory for all male citizens who are between 18 and 30 years old, with a number of exceptions. Avoiding the draft is a felony under Russian criminal code and is punishable by up to 18 months of imprisonment. Conscripts are generally prohibited from being deployed abroad.
Civil conscription is the obligation of civilians to perform mandatory labour for the government. This kind of work has to correspond with the exceptions in international agreements, otherwise it could fall under the category of unfree labour. There are two basic kinds of civil conscriptions. On the one hand, a compulsory service can be ordered on a temporary basis during wartimes and other times of emergency, like severe economic crisis or extraordinary natural events to provide basic services to the population. These include, but are not limited to, medical care, food supplies, defense industry supplies or cleanup efforts, following a severe weather or environmental disaster for the duration of the emergency. Therefore, it generally makes striking illegal for the duration of the civil mobilization. On the other hand, a revolving mandatory service may be required for a longer period of time, for example, to ensure community fire protection or to carry out infrastructure work at a local or community level.
Conscription in South Korea has existed since 1957 and requires male citizens between the ages of 18 and 35 to perform compulsory military service. Women are not required to perform military service, but they may voluntarily join the military.
France was the first modern nation state to introduce universal military conscription as a condition of citizenship. This was done in order to provide manpower for the country's military at the time of the French Revolution (1789–1799). Conscription in France continued in various forms for the next two centuries, until being phased out from 1997 to 2001.
The Republic of China Armed Forces Reserve was a division of the Republic of China Armed Forces tasked with managing, planning, and mobilizing the reserve potential of Taiwan. It aimed to provide the first line of coastal defence and wartime operations through its reserve forces, and to sustain military mobilization to support ground operations, maintenance, and homeland security. Another major role of the Reserve Command was the recruitment, education, and training of effective reserve forces. In 2022, it was assigned to the All-Out Defense Mobilization Agency.
China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) began as an all-volunteer force. In 1955, as part of an effort to modernize the PLA, the first Military Service Law created a system of compulsory military service. Since the late 1970s, the PLA has been a hybrid force that combines conscripts and volunteers. Conscripts who fulfilled their service obligation can stay in the military as volunteer soldiers for a total of 16 years.
Replenishment military service is a type of military service to make up for vacancies in active service. This type of military service can be found in the military service systems of several East Asian countries. It is also translated as "Replacement service" or "Supplementary service". Those who belong to it are "Replenishment soldiers", "Replacement soldiers" or "Supplementary soldiers"
Tseng Sheng-guang was a Taiwanese army veteran who volunteered to join the International Legion of Territorial Defence of Ukraine and was the first soldier from East Asia to be killed in action during the Russo-Ukrainian War.
