Conscripts vs. Volunteer Soldiers in the Romanian Army

While conscription has worked for the Romanian military throughout history and provided some advantages, the new direction and vision of the military can only be accomplished through an all-volunteer military. Facts and vision. Conscription has enjoyed widespread acceptance in the past 50 years in Romania to sustain effective defense and labor forces. However, the long-awaited abolition of the conscript Army currently in process is designed to bring Bucharest into line with its new North Atlantic Treaty Organization NATO partners. In its quest for membership of the alliance, which it joined last year, Romania undertook several reforms including radical cuts to the officer corps and an end to conscription. The armed forces have already downsized from 235,000 in 1994 to less than 100,000 and are expected to number only 75,000 by the end of next year. A decision made this year determined that the October 2006 generation of recruits would be the last to be called up. Beginning January 1, 2007, Romanian males with a minimum age of 20 will need to go to the military recruiting centers in order to register for service. The recruiting centers will be the sole registration format except in times of war when conscription would be reintroduced.