Boris Pistorius, Germany's defense minister, hit back Wednesday at critics within his own government as a row over army recruitment threatens to overshadow Berlin's push to bolster its military deterrence.
Conservative German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, citing the threat of a hostile Russia, has tasked Pistorius of the center-left Social Democrats with boosting recruitment to build up "the strongest conventional army in Europe."
But the question of how to get there has led to angry recriminations, as Pistorius prefers a purely voluntary approach while Merz's Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) has advocated the potential use of a draft lottery if necessary.
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