Austria wonders about the end of national service 
FAROUCHE ATTACHED its neutrality and its system of conscription, Austria is overtaken by the debate on a professional army. Old sea serpent of Austrian politics, the theme of professionalization has resurfaced with the arrival to power in 2008 a motley " grand coalition "between the two main parties in the country, the eternal rival social-(SPÖ) and Christian Democrats (ÖVP). The Minister of Defense, the Social Democratic Darabos, who has put his foot in it by announcing his unwavering support for a "new army (Bundesheer neu), stripped of its conscripts, like the decision by Sweden in 2010, before Serbia in 2011, and perhaps Germany, which also questioned the abandonment of compulsory service. The pay of professional soldiers from Austria, 13,000 in total, amount to 1700 euros per month, plus a bonus of 600 euros per month in foreign missions. A militia of 31,000 volunteers responsible for homeland defense would be created, participants who received a nest egg of € 5,000 per year over ten years. The proposed Darabos, the number "three" among the seven presented last week, made a stir within the Austrian political class. Among conservatives, opposition is fierce. The Vice-Chancellor and Finance Minister Josef Pröll and his colleague Foreign Affairs, Michael Spindelegger show their hostility, joined by President of the Republic, the Social Democrat Heinz Fischer. The SPÖ appears However, much more open to change: the Chancellor Faymann and the influential mayor of Vienna Michael Häupl Darabos assured of their support, citing the use of a popular referendum on the issue. Darabos hopes that conservatives and Social Democrats can agree on a compromise formula, before seeking parliamentary approval. Otherwise the Austrian people could be asked in a referendum this summer to choose between two models: that of a professional army based on a volunteer militia, or the maintenance of compulsory service. In military circles, has reform Darabos Relay weight. The former head of strategy Bundesheer Gerald Karner, ensures that such reform would save much money. "Currently, there is, we spend 400 to 500,000,000 euros per year in the training of conscripts, which lasted six months. However, "the called, after its formation, is never used, added a former senior Ministry of Defence, Erich Reiter. Any politician who claims that compulsory military service still has a sense did not understand the problem. " The officer corps remains deeply divided, however, too: the current Chief of Staff, General Edmund taint remains fiercely opposed to any change, convinced that a professional army in the long run, cost more than the compulsory service.
Lastminute : Monday, January 24, 2001, Darabos eventually sacked his chief of Staff, General taint for divergence of views (or rather, insubordination?). And it is around the minister to be on the spot, released by the Conservatives and the President of the Republic, now accused of dilettantism and falsification of figures (it have exaggerated the costs of maintaining the system of conscription).
