German Gen Z joins the Bundeswehr: The military becomes a plan B

Europe

To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement.

One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site.

Issued on: 07/07/2026 - 12:55Modified: 07/07/2026 - 13:02

05:18 min

From the show

Reading time

1 min

Germany is rearming amid an economic recession with thousands of jobs slashed across industrial and service sectors. In these tough economic conditions, the Bundeswehr is now one of the country's most attractive employers for young people. Applications rose by 23 percent in January 2026 alone. Behind the figures lies a more complicated reality: for many young Germans, putting on a uniform is not a vocation – it's a fallback option. FRANCE 24’s Anne Mailliet reports, with Nick Holdsworth.

By:

Nick HOLDSWORTH