Germany's Bundeswehr could be transformed from a conscription-based army to one of professional soldiers by 2010, German Defense Minister Peter Struck said in a radio interview Monday.If the next German parliament in its 2006-2010 term approves such a change "the army will be able fulfill its missions without any major changes to its structures," he told German broadcaster NDR.
Struck, who didn't exclude the possibility of a vote on the issue during the next parliament, stuck to his Social Democratic (SPD) party's position that the current conscription system should remain in place.
Conscription has been a point of contention between Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's SPD party and his coalition partner Greens, which favor establishing a fully professional army.
In the interview, Struck also announced the closure of around 100 more army bases as part of the reform process he earlier described as designed to adapt the army to the Germany's needs.
The government has already announced that total military staffing levels in the armed forces are due to fall from 285,000 at present to 250,000 by 2010, while the numbers of civilian staff are to be cut by half. There are currently 80,000 conscripts.
Germany's annual military budget is set at 24.2 billion euros (30.2 nillion dollars) until 2006. The majority of the funds are spent on personnel and equipment costs, leaving little room for maneuver for foreign deployments -- one of the government's defense policy priorities.
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