Armed forces

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The armed forces of a country are its government-sponsored defense,

fighting forces, and organizations. They exist to further the foreign and
domestic policies of their governing body and to defend that body and the
nation it represents from external and internal aggressors. In broad usage,
the terms "armed forces" and "military" are often treated synonymously,
although in technical usage a distinction is sometimes made in which a
country's armed forces may include both its military and other paramilitary
forces. Armed force is the use of armed forces to achieve political objectives.

The study of the use of armed forces is called military science. Broadly
speaking, this involves considering offense and defense at three "levels":
strategy, operational art, and tactics. All three levels study the application of
the use of force in order to achieve a desired objective.
Countries by number of active soldiers (2009)

Contents

1 Organization
2 Benefits and costs
3 See also
4 References

Organization
Main article: Military organization

In most countries the basis of the armed forces is the military, divided into
basic military branches. However, armed forces can include other
paramilitary structures.
Benefits and costs
Map of the military expenditures as a percentage of GDP by country, CIA
figures.
Military spending in 2007, in USD, according to the Stockholm International
Peace Research Institute.

The obvious benefit to a country in maintaining armed forces is in providing

protection from foreign threats and from internal conflict. In recent decades
armed forces personnel have also been used as emergency civil support roles
in post-disaster situations. On the other hand, they may also harm a society
by engaging in counter-productive (or merely unsuccessful) warfare.
Expenditure on science and technology to develop weapons and systems
sometimes produces side benefits, although some claim that greater benefits
could come from targeting the money directly.[1][2]
See also

Deterrence theory
Mercenary
Militaria
Military fiat
Military history
Military incompetence
Military intelligence
Military dictatorship
Military junta

Military rule (disambiguation)

Military Aid to the Civil Power
Military Aid to the Civil Community
Standing army
Civil-military relations

Armed forces of the world

List of militaries by country

List of militaries that recruit foreigners
List of countries by military expenditures
List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel
List of countries without armed forces
List of air forces
List of armies
List of navies

References

http://www.usnews.com/debate-club/are-cuts-to-the-defense-budgetnecessary

http://www.businessinsider.com/we-should-cut-military-spending-gradually2013-2

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This page was last modified on 17 September 2016, at 04:45.

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