Volunteer recruits face months-long waits in Vilnius and Kaunas

People seeking to join Lithuania’s National Defence Volunteer Forces are facing waits of several months in Vilnius and Kaunas, where demand exceeds available places, LRT reports. About 1,000 people have been invited to join the forces this year.

Arūnas Balčiūnas, head of the Military Conscription and Recruitment Service, said candidates are assessed on factors including their education and health. Their membership in the Lithuanian Riflemen’s Union and whether they hold a higher-category driving licence may also be considered.

Those unable to start service straight away can choose another location. People seeking to serve in Vilnius, for example, may be offered places in Trakai, Elektrėnai or Švenčionys. Some accept the alternatives, while others wait for a place in their chosen unit to open up. “Sometimes they have to wait several months or longer, until a place becomes available and there is an opportunity to accept them,” Balčiūnas said.

He said the main reason for the queues was the limited number of positions. Companies in major cities are small and are almost all full. Expanding them would require more instructors and infrastructure.

Laurynas Kasčiūnas, a former defence minister and leader of the Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats’ parliamentary group, said support from allies and Ukraine could help address the shortage of instructors. When army specialists train volunteers or conscripts, he said, they cannot carry out their regular duties or train in their own specialities. He gave the example of a Javelin operator who cannot perform that role while training recruits.

Kasčiūnas also said recruitment was being held back by uncertainty over the volunteer forces’ role in national defence. Discussions are continuing over whether they should serve as mobile territorial defence forces or mainly perform support functions in the division being formed.

Dainius Gaižauskas, a member of the Seimas’ LVŽS and KŠS parliamentary group, said volunteers had also told him about equipment problems. Some, he said, had been issued uniforms several sizes too large, with no replacements available. He criticised the leadership of the Ministry of National Defence over the issue.

Lithuania plans to introduce universal conscription in 2032. Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas said the State Defence Council had considered earlier dates, but the military had set out why it proposed 2032. He said there was enough time before then to prepare infrastructure and secure personnel and funding. Once universal conscription is introduced, about 7,500 young people would be called up each year.