Military Forces of Colombia

Military Forces of Colombia Fuerzas Militares de Colombia
The tri-service badge
Service branches	National Army National Navy Naval Infrantry Air Force
Leadership
Commander-in-Chief	President Juan Manuel Santos
Minister of Defense	Juan Carlos Pinzón
General Commander	General Alejandro Navas Ramos
Manpower
Military age	18
Conscription	18 months Army and Air Force, 24 months Navy, 12 Months National Police
Available for military service	23,287,388 (2008 est.)[1], age 15–49 (2005 est.)
Fit for military service	17,976,288(2008 est.)[1], age 15–49 (2005 est.)
Reaching military age annually	875,595[1] (2005 est.)
Active personnel	285,554[2] (ranked 19th)
Expenditures
Budget	US$11.0229 billion[3] (COP$15.6 trillion) (FY09)
Percent of GDP	5.7%[4] (FY08)
Industry
Domestic suppliers	Indumil Cotecmar
Foreign suppliers	United States  Israel  Brazil  South Africa

The Military Forces of Colombia (Spanish: Fuerzas Militares de Colombia) are the armed forces of the Republic of Colombia.

Services

The Military of Colombia consists of:

• National Army of Colombia (Ejército Nacional de Colombia)
• Colombian National Armada (Armada Nacional de Colombia) - Marines, Navy and Coast Guard attached

• Colombian Naval Infantry (Infanteria de Marina) - A branch of the Colombian Navy for amphibious operations

• Colombian Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Colombiana)

The Specific Command of San Andres y Providencia was created on March 5, 1983 by the Ministry of Defense of Colombia. The Command is stationed in the islands of San Andres y Providencia which are located in the Caribbean seanortheast of Colombia between 10°49'00N y 16°10'10N and 76°15'00W y 82°00'00W.^[5]

Dependencies

• Military Medical Corps (Sanidad Militar) - Medical and Nurse Corps
• Indumil (Industrias Militares INDUMIL) - Military Industry Depot
• Military Sports Federation (Federación Deportiva Militar FEDECODEMIL)
• Military Printing (Imprenta Militar)
• Military Museum (Museo Militar) - History of the Armed Forces of Colombia
• War Superior College (Escuela Superior de Guerra ESDEGUE)

Funding

In 1999, Colombia assigned 3.6% of its GDP to defense, according to the National Planning Department. By 2007 this figure had risen to 6.1% of GDP, one of the highest rates in the world. The armed forces number about 250,000 uniformed personnel: 145,000 military and 105,000 police. These figures do not include assistance personnel such as cooks, medics, mechanics, and so on. This makes the Colombian military one of the largest and most well-equipped in Latin America. Many Colombian military personnel have received military training assistance directly in Colombia and also in the United States. The United States has provided equipment and financing to the Colombian military and police through the military assistance program, foreign military sales, and the international narcotics control program, all currently united under the auspices of Plan Colombia.

World factbook statistics

Colombian Special Forces soldiers

A vessel of the Colombian Navy

• Military branches:
  • Colombian Army (Ejercito Nacional)
  • Colombian Navy (Armada Nacional, includes Marines and Coast Guard)
  • Colombian Air Force (Fuerza Aerea Colombiana)

• Military manpower - military service age and obligation: 18 years of age for compulsory and voluntary military service; conscript service obligation - 24 months (2004)

• Military manpower - availability:
  • males age 18-49: 10,212,456
  • females age 18-49: 10,561,562 (2005 estimate)

• Military manpower - fit for military service:
  • males age 18-49: 6,986,228
  • females age 18-49: 8,794,465 (2005 estimate)

• Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
  • males age 18-49: 389,735
  • females age 18-49: 383,146 (2005 estimate)

Expenditures

• Military expenditures - dollar figure: $11.0229 billion (FY09)^[3]
• Military expenditures - percent of GDP:6.5% (FY08)^[4]

Rank Insignia

Main article: Military ranks of the Colombian Armed Forces

See also

• AFEUR
• Colombia
• Colombian Army
• Indumil
• Joint Task Force OMEGA
• Military ranks of the Colombian Armed Forces

References and notes

1. ^ ^{a b c} "The World Fact Book - Colombia". CIA. 2009-03-05. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/co.html. Retrieved 2009-03-09. 
2. ^ LOGROS DE LA POLÍTICA DE CONSOLIDACIÓN DE LA SEGURIDAD DEMOCRÁTICA – PCSD Junio de 2009, página 81
3. ^ ^{a b} LOGROS DE LA POLÍTICA DE CONSOLIDACIÓN DE LA SEGURIDAD DEMOCRÁTICA –PCSD Febrero 2009
4. ^ ^{a b} "Logros De La Política De Consolidación De La Seguridad Democrática" (in Spanish). Republic of Colombia Ministry of National Defense. June 2008. http://www.mindefensa.gov.co/descargas/Sobre_el_Ministerio/Planeacion/ResultadosOperacionales/Resultados%20Operacionales%20Ene%20-%20Jun%202008.pdf. Retrieved 2009-03-09. 
5. ^ http://www.armada.mil.co/index.php?idcategoria=357769

External links

• Ministerio de Defensa de Colombia - Official Ministry of Defense site (Spanish)
• Comando General de las Fuerzas Militares - Official Armed Forces General Command (Spanish)
• Ejército Nacional de Colombia - Official Army site (Spanish)
• Ejército Nacional de Colombia - Official Army site (English)
• Armada Nacional de Colombia - Official Navy site ((Spanish) and (English))
• Fuérza Aérea Colombiana - Official Air Force site (Spanish)
• Policía Nacional de Colombia - Official National Police site (Spanish)
• UNFFMM - Unofficial site of the Colombian Military Forces

Other Links

• Colombian Military expenditure (Spanish)