Germany shortens military service to 6 months
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Germany has shortened its mandatory military service for young men from nine to six months. The governing center-right coalition passed the legislation in parliament late Thursday evening.
Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg on Sunday said that Germany was likely to abolish conscription in 10 years in a bid to save money and to have a fully professional armed forces better able to deal with today's threats. He says currently Germany's military of 252,000 soldiers is only able to deploy 8,000 abroad. (AP)
