Conscription initiative

Stocker: “Let’s not go round in circles”

Stocker on ORF's "Pressestunde" program(Bild: ORF)

Chancellor Christian Stocker took his coalition partners by surprise with his push for a referendum on conscription. The ÖVP politician has now taken a stance on the issue—and cautiously rejected a noticeable expansion of direct democracy.

For the Chancellor, the main issue is to find "Austria's position" in this new world. Stocker wants to be among "the winners." This requires a strong national defense, he explained on ORF's "Pressestunde" program on Sunday.   

He envisaged the sequence as follows: there are proposals for reforms, now comes the political decision-making process – and then the population should be "brought on board." Stocker did not want to answer what specifically should be asked. "It depends on the process that has now begun."

It is not a matter of "outsourcing" an important decision. However, Stocker also admitted that "anything could happen" in a referendum. Nevertheless, everything will be done to ensure that the reform proceeds in an orderly manner. The only thing that is certain is that things cannot remain as they are. Autumn is a realistic time frame for the referendum.

Of course, we don't send our speeches around in a circle.

Bundeskanzler Stocker

Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER

Stocker did not want to overstate the fact that his initiative had surprised his coalition partners. "Of course we don't send our speeches around in a circle," the chancellor explained succinctly. 

Babler did it too – without consultation
The new basket of cheap staple foods was also trumpeted without consultation with Vice-Chancellor Andreas Babler (SPÖ). "In the end, we quickly came to an agreement." The same will apply to the referendum on military service. "Just because something has not been agreed upon and is not clear in every detail does not mean that we cannot come to an agreement."

Stocker rejected the idea of a referendum as a continuous model, as demanded by the FPÖ: "I think we should concentrate on this (military service) for now."

Austrian Armed Forces want "eight plus two"
The Chief of Staff of the Austrian Armed Forces, Rudolf Striedinger, spoke to "Die Presse" in favor of extending military service and a model of eight months of basic military service plus two months of compulsory militia exercises. He did not want to comment on the referendum proposed by Stocker, saying that it was not a military issue.

The Military Service Commission had also recommended the "eight plus two" model. A "six plus two" model, on the other hand, would be insufficient, says Striedinger: "In modern warfare, all our forces must be highly mobile. They must be prepared for this and train in the troops: this training takes place in the seventh and eighth months. This ability must then be maintained at an operational level through regular exercises." He assumes that civilian service will be extended to twelve months if an "eight plus two" model is introduced.

In order for the military service reform to be implemented at the beginning of 2027, at least a fundamental decision by politicians is needed in the first quarter of 2026, according to the Chief of Staff: "Our plans have shown that we need a nine-month lead time to convert the system accordingly."