at the time of ratification or accession that specifies their minimum voluntary age and outlines appropriate safeguards to ensure that such recruitment is not forced or coerced (See Box 15.1).315 The international community, however, is progressively moving towards accepting 18 as the minimum age also for voluntary recruitment in armed forces (see Table 1). 316317 Box 15.1 Voluntary Recruitment under 18 Years of Age: Safeguards316 States parties that permit voluntary recruitment into their national armed forces under the age of 18 years shall maintain safeguards to ensure, as a minimum, that: (a) Such recruitment is genuinely voluntary; (b) Such recruitment is carried out with the informed consent of the person’s parents or legal guardians; (c) Such persons are fully informed of the duties involved in such military service; (d) Such persons provide reliable proof of age prior to acceptance into national military service. Table 1 Status of OSCE Participating States in Relation to the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict 317 Minimum age for voluntary recruitment Albania**** n/a Andorra 18 Armenia 18 Austria 17 Azerbaijan 17 Belarus 18* Belgium 18 Bosnia and Herzegovina 18 Bulgaria 18 Canada 16 Croatia 18 Cyprus**** n/a Germany Greece Hungary*** Holy See Iceland Ireland Italy Kazakhstan Kyrgyzstan Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Minimum age for voluntary recruitment 17 18 n/a 19 n/a 17** 17 19 18 18 18 17 Czech Republic Denmark Estonia*** Finland France Georgia**** Malta Monaco Norway Netherlands*** Poland Portugal 17½ 21 18 n/a 18 18 18 18 18 18 17 18 Moldova Romania Russian Federation*** San Marino*** Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Tajikistan Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia Turkey Turkmenistan Ukraine United Kingdom United States of America Uzbekistan**** Minimum age for voluntary recruitment 18 18 18 n/a 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 18 n/a 18 16 17 n/a *Exception: admission to military academy at 17 years **Exception: enlistment to Air Corps apprenticeships at 16 years *** Signed but not ratified the Optional Protocol ****Has not signed the Optional Protocol 315  Ibid., Art.3.2. 316  Art. 3.3 of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. 317  “Ratifications and Reservations” on the website of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, at <http://www.ohchr.org/english/countries/ratification/11_b.htm>, last update 6 December 2006; ODIHR-DCAF questionnaire, question 26. 146 Handbook on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of Armed Forces Personnel