When we look at the ongoing debates around military readiness and conscription, it becomes clear how politics and the media are preparing the ground for the unconditional rearmament of the German military. This has long been happening in the production and export of weapons and war machinery, but now the push is also toward recruiting more personnel. The dominant narratives portray this as an unavoidable necessity, narrowing public discussion to questions of “how” and “when”—without ever questioning war itself.
“Peace,” in these debates, always rests on the idea of nation-states and by no means guarantees a safe or free life for everyone. This capitalist peace primarily means the smooth functioning of exploitation and oppression. The social war continues. We want a peace that means a good life for all—free from capitalist, racist, and patriarchal logics.
War is already here. The threat of further military conflict in Europe has increased—there is no doubt about that. Since the beginning of the war in Ukraine, a friend-or-foe mentality has been strategically cultivated: only those who are willing to fight and, if necessary, die for the defense of territorial integrity, for democracy, for Europe, for Germany, are considered part of “us.”
Why, then, should it make sense to reject military service in light of the alleged threat? Why refuse the so-called “new realities” that are being so vehemently invoked from all sides? Positions expressing a fundamental critique of militarization and rearmament have always been marginalized. All the more reason for us to take a stand and ask difficult questions.
One of the key aspects of advancing militarization is the closing of ranks—an oath of loyalty to the national community. This shift goes hand in hand with a steady process of fascization, fortified borders, racist agitation, and queerphobia. None of this is accidental. In such a social climate, the decision to refuse compulsory service is constructed as a moral failure; those affected must face accusations of lacking conscience.
Alongside open threats of social isolation and repression, there is also a promise: an offer—especially to the excluded and precarious—to finally be accepted and treated as equals, to be needed, and thus included in the national community (a community that defines itself primarily through the construction of an external threat). This comes with a salary that promises economic stability. And those who cannot be persuaded—an option discussed quite openly—are simply to be forced.
Even though Germany currently has no compulsory service—neither with weapons nor in one of the countless “civilian” but war-relevant sectors—anyone can be called up quickly in a crisis. The political step toward such obligations seems almost as small as the parliamentary hurdle to reactivate the “suspended” draft.
We want to join forces with those who choose a different path to peace and freedom—one that does not rely on the collective identity of a “defensive nation.” Conversations and shared practices around the deconstruction of militarism—across all borders and frontlines—can help us confront state and power ideologies with international solidarity.
Exchanging experiences of refusal and subversion of militarism at every level gives us strength and inspiration. We want to strengthen a position that resists the logic of rearmament and the militarization of everyday life. We want to hear and learn from different perspectives that break through this supposed normality—whether through acts of refusal or other forms of resistance.
In November 2024, we already gathered in Hamburg to exchange ideas about how people in other contexts are resisting conscription, what their realities look like, and what social consequences they face. We learned that the existence of conscription is a mechanism that indoctrinates generation after generation into militaristic logic. It is an apparatus rooted in centuries-old strategies of domination and oppression, held together by racism and patriarchy. This fundamentally contradicts any project of social liberation.
From an anarchist perspective, resistance against the reintroduction of conscription and against militarization is not merely about defending the hard-won right to self-determination. It is also about how we can oppose the nationalist rollback with an internationalist and combative perspective. We will not accept war-justifying or authoritarian positions—we will confront them with subversive and solidaristic practices.
That is why we are once again looking forward to making the weekend of 14–16 November 2025 a moment of collective exchange—comrades from different parts of the world will present their projects and share their experiences and analyses with us.
We also invite you to submit written contributions once again, which we will publish in a brochure after the event!
