Croatia's first conscripts in nearly two decades arrived at barracks Monday after the Balkan nation reintroduced mandatory military service.The European Union member scrapped compulsory military service in 2008, a year before joining NATO.
But since 2020 -- and increasingly since Russia invaded Ukraine -- the country has pushed to restore basic military training with lawmakers approving its return last October.
Around 800 recruits -- a majority of them volunteers -- arrived for the two months of training at three centres Monday.
Among them were 82 women, who are required by law to serve.
Once the recruits have completed their training, they will become part of Croatia's reserve forces.
Defence Minister Ivan Anusic last week praised the response to the call for recruits, describing it as a "major and important project for Croatia's security".
"Young people have recognised the importance of basic military training," Anusic said.
The recruits will not be trained to be deployed to conflict zones but instead learn survival, self-defence and drone operation, he told reporters.
The project is expected to cost up to 25 million euros ($29 million) a year, with conscripts paid 1,100 euros ($1,290) a month.
EU countries have dramatically boosted defence spending in recent years to a record 381 billion euros ($442 billion) in 2025, according to the European Defence Agency.
Conscripts will receive preferential treatment when applying for Croatian government jobs after their service.
Ten conscientious objectors have been offered much lower-paid work with civil protection services or local government.
Critics argue that the measure discriminates against women in not treating them in the same way as men and against those who would prefer to do civil protection work instead of military service.
Officials plan to gradually expand the call-up to around 19,000 young people a year as they turn 19.
Croatia is the first former Yugoslav republic to reintroduce compulsory military service since the socialist country disintegrated in a series of bloody wars in the 1990s.
Neighbouring Serbia, which abolished conscription in 2011, also plans to restore it.
The 75-day mandatory service could start either in December or in March next year, President Aleksandar Vucic said.
Croatia's military budget is slightly above NATO's target of two per cent of gross domestic product.
Zagreb aims to raise it to three per cent by 2030.
