The Military Forces of Colombia ( es, Fuerzas Militares de Colombia, links=no) are the unified

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

of the

Republic of Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Cari ...

. They consist of the

Colombian Army The National Army of Colombia ( es, Ejército Nacional de Colombia) is the land warfare service branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. With over 361,420 active personnel as of 2020, it is the largest and oldest service branch in Colombia, an ...

, the

Colombian Navy ) , colors= , march= ''"Viva Colombia, soy marinero"'' , mascot= , battles= Battle of Lake Maracaibo Thousand Days War (Civil war) Colombia-Peru War World War II Korean War Colombian Armed Conflict Operation Atalanta , notable_commanders= José ...

and the

Colombian Air Force , "We are the Force" , colours = , colours_label = , march = Colombian Air Force Hymn , mascot = Capitan Paz , anniversaries = 8 November , ...

. The

National Police of Colombia The National Police of Colombia (Spanish: ''Policía Nacional de Colombia'') is the national police force of the Republic of Colombia. Although the National Police is not part of the Military Forces of Colombia (Army, Navy, and Air Force), it ...

, although technically not part of the military, is controlled and administered by the

Ministry of National Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

, and national

conscription Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...

also includes service in the National Police, thus making it a ''

de facto ''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...

gendarmerie Wrong info! --> A gendarmerie () is a military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (literally, ...

and a branch of the military. The

President of Colombia The president of Colombia ( es, Presidente de Colombia), officially known as the president of the Republic of Colombia ( es, Presidente de la República de Colombia) or president of the nation ( es, Presidente de la Nacion) is the head of stat ...

is the military's commander in chief, and helps formulate defense policy through the Ministry of National Defence, which is in charge of day-to-day operations. The Military Forces of Colombia have their roots in the Army of the Commoners (), which was formed on 7 August 1819 – before the establishment of the present day Colombia – to meet the demands of the Revolutionary War against the

Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

. After their triumph in the war, the Army of the Commoners disbanded, and the

Congress of Angostura The Congress of Angostura was convened by Simón Bolívar and took place in Angostura (today Ciudad Bolívar) during the wars of Independence of Colombia and Venezuela, culminating in the proclamation of the Republic of Colombia (historiograph ...

created the

Gran Colombia Gran Colombia (, "Great Colombia"), or Greater Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia (Spanish: ''República de Colombia''), was a state that encompassed much of northern South America and part of southern Central America from 1819 to 18 ...

n Army to replace it, thus establishing the first military service branch of the country. The Colombian military was operationally involved in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was the only Latin American country to send troops to the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Ever since the advent of the

Colombian Conflict The Colombian conflict ( es, link=no, Conflicto armado interno de Colombia) began on May 27, 1964, and is a low-intensity asymmetric war between the government of Colombia, far-right paramilitary groups, crime syndicates, and far-left gue ...

, the Colombian military has been involved in combat, pacification,

counter-insurgency Counterinsurgency (COIN) is "the totality of actions aimed at defeating irregular forces". The Oxford English Dictionary defines counterinsurgency as any "military or political action taken against the activities of guerrillas or revolutionar ...

, and

drug interdiction The war on drugs is a global campaign, led by the United States federal government, of drug prohibition, military aid, and military intervention, with the aim of reducing the illegal drug trade in the United States.Cockburn and St. Clair, 199 ...

operations all over the country's national territory. Recently it has participated in counter-piracy efforts in the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

under

Operation Ocean Shield Operation Ocean Shield was NATO's contribution to Operation Enduring Freedom – Horn of Africa (OEF-HOA), an anti-piracy initiative in the Indian Ocean, Guardafui Channel, Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea. It follows the earlier Operation Al ...

and

Operation Atlanta Operation Atlanta was a road security operation in Đồng Nai Province carried out by the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment (11th ACR) from 19 October to December 1966 during the Vietnam War and was the first major combat operation of the 11th ACR in ...

. The military of Colombia is the third largest in the

Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the term We ...

in terms of active personnel and has the fourth largest expenditure in the

Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

, behind the

United States Armed Forces The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

, the

Canadian Armed Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

and the

Brazilian Armed Forces The Brazilian Armed Forces ( pt, Forças Armadas Brasileiras, ) are the unified military forces of the Federative Republic of Brazil. Consisting of three service branches, it comprises the Brazilian Army (including the Brazilian Army Aviatio ...

respectively.

Services

The

Colombian Constitution The Political Constitution of Colombia of 1991 ( es, Constitución Política de Colombia de 1991), is the Constitution of the Republic of Colombia. It was promulgated in Constitutional Gazette number 114 on Thursday, July 4, 1991, and is also ...

includes two overlapping definitions of what could be defined as 'armed forces' in English: * The Public Force (): Includes the Military Forces proper and the National Police (Title VII, chapter VII, Art. 216) * The Military Forces (): Includes only the 3 major military service branches: Army, Navy and Air Force (Title VII, chapter VII, Art. 217) This is a subtle yet important distinction, both in terms of emphasizing the civil nature of the National Police, but also adapting the national police to function as a paramilitary force which can perform military duties as a result of the

. This has led to some of the most important police units adopting military training and conducting special operations alongside the Colombian Army, Air Force, and Navy. Therefore, the functions of the Colombian Police in practical terms are similar to those of a gendarmerie, like the

Spanish Civil Guard The Civil Guard ( es, Guardia Civil, link=no; ) is the oldest law enforcement agency in Spain and is one of two national police forces. As a national gendarmerie force, it is military in nature and is responsible for civil policing under the au ...

and the

Carabineros de Chile ( en, Carabiniers of Chile) are the Chilean national law enforcement police, who have jurisdiction over the entire national territory of the Republic of Chile. Created in 1927, their mission is to maintain order and enforce the laws of Chile. T ...

, which maintain military ranks for all police personnel.

Personnel

The Colombian armed forces consist of:
Military Forces: *

– and attached services

Marines Marines, or naval infantry, are typically a military force trained to operate in littoral zones in support of naval operations. Historically, tasks undertaken by marines have included helping maintain discipline and order aboard the ship (refle ...

and

Colombian Coast Guard The Colombian Coast Guard is the Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defense, search and rescue, and maritime law enforcement branch of the Military Forces of Colombia. Equipped with modern electronic surveillance and location systems at l ...

Colombian Air Force , "We are the Force" , colours = , colours_label = , march = Colombian Air Force Hymn , mascot = Capitan Paz , anniversaries = 8 November , ...

And, *

Public Force strength as of April 2014.

Dependencies

* Military Medical Corps ('') – Medical and Nurse Corps * Indumil () – Military Industry Depot * Military Sports Federation () * Military Printing () * Military Museum () – History of the Armed Forces of Colombia * Superior War College (

Escuela Superior de Guerra (Colombia) The Escuela Superior de Guerra (founded 1909) is a military college under the Military Forces of Colombia. It was founded during the reforms of President Rafael Reyes, himself a former general.Historical Dictionary of Colombia Harvey F. Kline - 2012 ...

ESDEGUE)

Funding

In 2000, Colombia assigned 3.9% of its GDP to defense. By 2008 this figure had risen to 4.8%, ranking it 14th 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 Plan Colombia was a United States foreign aid, military aid, and diplomatic initiative aimed at combating Colombian drug cartels and left-wing insurgent groups in Colombia. The plan was originally conceived in 1999 by the administrations of Col ...

World factbook statistics

*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)

Rank Insignia

: File:Colombian Air Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpía III (S-70A-41) Ramírez-1.jpg, Colombian Air Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpía III (S-70A-41) just after having launched several flares. File:Infantes de marina colombia.JPG, Colombian Marines File:Arc fragata caldas.jpg,

Frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

ARC Caldas File:Special Forces Colombia.jpg, Colombian Special Forces soldiers File:ARC Almirante Padilla.jpg, A vessel of the Colombian Navy

References and notes

*Includes 435 ''sub-officers'' es, Suboficiales and 3,125 ''agents'' es, Agentes *Includes 123,125 executive personnel es, Nivel Ejecutivo and 23,562 Auxiliary conscript es, Auxiliares

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Military Of Colombia Military of Colombia Ministry of National Defense (Colombia) fr:Armée nationale colombienne

Services

Personnel

Dependencies

Funding

World factbook statistics

Rank Insignia

See also

References and notes

External links

Other Links

Bibliography