The order issued by the Minister of Defense Andris Sprūds envisages the enlistment of two batches into the ranks of the National Armed Forces in 2025, conscripting a total of 1,040 persons - 210 persons in January and 830 persons in July.
According to the order of the Minister of Defense, by June 15 of this year, in addition up to 200 persons are expected to be admitted to five years of part-time service in the National Guard and up to 50 persons to the reserve officer program intended for university and college students.
At the same time, the order stipulates that if the required number of soldiers for the 11-month national defense service is not reached after the conclusion of the voluntary application period, the missing number will be provided by random selection, which will take place on July 17, 2024. The first instance of this computer-generated draft took place recently, as described by LSM.
Volunteers for military service will receive twice the monthly compensation of those picked by the random number generator – 600 euros per month instead of 300 euros. Latvian citizens of both sexes aged 18-27 can volunteer, but the compulsory conscription method gives priority to men aged 18 and 19.
