Seimas decided to increase the number of soldiers conscripted into permanent mandatory initial military service, as well as cadets of the Military Academy and Lithuanian army limit numbers of civilian employees, active army personnel reserve soldiers.
According to the adopted amendments, the limits of the number of soldiers called up for permanent mandatory initial military service will reach from 3400 to 4400 (until now it was from 3800 to 4000). In this way, according to the initiators, the required staffing of the units of the Lithuanian army will be achieved, ensuring sufficient, continuous unit manning and combat training.
The higher maximum number of cadets allowed will reach from 320 to 440. Every year, it will be possible to admit more cadets to the General Jonas Žemaitis Lithuanian Military Academy and thus consistently increase the number of officers to ensure the need for officers for the national defense system.
Instead of 1500-4000, the limited number of active-duty reserve soldiers called up for exercises and training will range from 2500 to 5000.
It was also decided to increase the number of employees of the Lithuanian army working under employment contracts from 1800 to 2050. This was done taking into account the growing need for civilian personnel of the army to provide medical care, catering, warehouses, infrastructure maintenance, supply and other service services. It is planned that in 2023 three military towns will be built in Šiauliai, in Vilnius district and Šilalė district, and the maintenance of the infrastructure of these military units alone will require approximately 150 employees working under employment contracts.
Old terms are abandoned
NATO countries are gradually transitioning to the new doctrine, abandoning the use of the terms "motorized" or "mechanized" infantry. In order to avoid different interpretations of the same term in different NATO countries, by amending the law, it was decided to switch to the common name infantry brigade and infantry battalion. In this case, when weapons and equipment change in an infantry brigade or battalion, their names will not need to be changed and clarified.
In addition, in order to make sense of one of the most famous and greatest of the XNUMXth century. thanks to the merits of the horsemen, Jonas Karolis Chodkevičius, the Motorized Infantry Brigade "Žemaitija" of the Lithuanian Army was given the name of the great hetman of Lithuania Jonas Karolis Chodkevičius.
