Voluntary military service to be more attractive

The financial contribution for volunteer soldiers will be increased by €200, and their training will be reduced from 12 to 11 weeks, according to an amendment to the law on voluntary military service adopted by the Cabinet on Wednesday. The changes in the law stemmed from the analysis of a pilot project. This included an evaluation by the 31 people who successfully completed the first training course. As part of the pilot project, volunteers received a contribution equalling 2.25 percent of the subsistence minimum per day. In line with the new rules, they will be given 3.75 percent. At the moment, the subsistence minimum is €198.09 per month. The Defence Ministry intends to start training the next group of volunteer soldiers as soon as the aforementioned amendment takes effect on July 1, 2017. The ministry wants to train around 150 volunteer soldiers annually.