Lithuania to reintroduce conscription

Lithuania is to reintroduce conscription over concerns about "the current geopolitical environment" in the Baltic states, President Dalia Grybauskaite said

Conscription will be renewed for a five-year-period to "enhance and accelerate army recruitment", President Dalia Grybauskaite said.

President Dalia Grybauskaite  did not specifically refer to the situation in Ukraine, but neighbouring states have expressed worries about Russian aggression.

Parliament must still approve the plan.

Lithuania abolished conscription in 2008, but the new rules would see it reinstated for men aged 19-26, with exemptions for certain categories, such as university students and single fathers.

Up to 3,500 men would be recruited each year.