MOSCOW, August 7 (RIA Novosti) - Military training for the first batch of Emirati conscripts is set to begin August 30, and the United Arab Emirates’ National and Reserve Service Authority has begun issuing military cards, Emirati state news agency WAM reported.
“The issuing of the law comes with the goals of affirming the instilling of the values of loyalty, affiliation and sacrifice in the souls of the sons of homeland,” WAM reported Wednesday.
The introduction of compulsory military training was endorsed June 2014 by the UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al Nahyan and published in the country’s official gazette.
All Emirati males aged 18 to 30 who have finished secondary school will be required to serve for nine months while those without a high school diploma will serve for two years.
Citing the new law, citizens who fail to enlist for military service before 29 years of age without a valid reason will face a jail term of between one month and a year and/or a fine of 50,000 to 100,000 dirhams ($13,610 to $27,220). They will have to undergo the military service even if they exceed the age limit of 30. Military service for women is optional but will be allowed for a maximum of nine months if granted permission by their legal guardian, Gulf Business Magazine reported.
According to the draft law, citizens who complete the mandatory military service will enjoy a range of benefits, including: priority for taking up jobs in government institutions and private businesses, marriage grants, housing plots and scholarships.
Kuwait is debating the reintroduction of compulsory military service, which was cancelled after the Iraq invaded the country in 1990. Compulsory military service is not applied in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Oman, where professional armies are employed.
