Lithuania: conscription may become permanent

Having reintroduced conscription temporarily (for a span of five years) last year, the State Defence Council decided in March that mandatory military service would be enacted indefinitely. The council's decision now have to be approved at the Seimas, the country's parliament. Conscription had been abolished in 2008, but was reintroduced - and defence spending also increased - citing security threats in Eastern Europe.

Sources: Shanghai Daily, Lithuania to reintroduce permanent conscription, 15 March 2016; The Baltic Times, Lithuania to reintroduce permanent conscription, 15 May 2016.