Military of the Netherlands
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Military of Netherlands |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1572 |
| Service branches | Koninklijke Landmacht (Army) Koninklijke Marine (Navy) Koninklijke Luchtmacht (Air Force) Koninklijke Marechaussee (Military Constabulary) |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-Chief | The Government |
| Minister of Defence | Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert |
| Chief of Defence | General Tom Middendorp |
| Manpower | |
| Military age | 17 |
| Available for military service |
7,728,129, age 20 |
| Fit for military service |
6,324,217, age 20 |
| Reaching military age annually |
201,845 |
| Active personnel | 59,346 |
| Reserve personnel |
32,200 (retired troops still mobilisable) Plans for up to 25,000 more reservists |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | € 8,000,363,000 (2015) |
| Percent of GDP | 1.2% (2015) |
32,200 (retired troops still mobilisable)
The Armed forces of the Netherlands consist of the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
The service branches consist of:
In addition, within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, there are small local conscript forces on the islands of Aruba (Arumil) and Curaçao (Antmil). These operate under the auspices of the Royal Netherlands Navy and Marines.
The military ranks of the Dutch armed forces have similarities with British and U.S. military ranks. The highest-ranking officer in the Dutch military is the Chief of the Netherlands Defence Staff, who is usually (but not necessarily) a four-star officer (NATO OF-9).
The Dutch armed forces exist by declaration in the constitution of the Netherlands. Article 97 of this constitution determines that the armed forces exist
Interestingly, this means that the role and responsibility of the Dutch military in international stability and peacekeeping is constitutionally determined.
The same article of the constitution determines that supreme command of the Dutch military resides with the Government of the Netherlands. This has been the case since the constitution was changed in 1983; before then, supreme command of the armed forces of the Netherlands was held by the King of the Netherlands.
In addition, a second major change in military affairs was made in 2003. Before then, all citizens of the Netherlands were tasked with the defense of the kingdom. In keeping with the move to a professional military, this article was dropped.
The Netherlands' military is currently a fully professional military. Conscription in the Netherlands was suspended in 1996 with the exception of Aruba and Curaçao. All military branches and specialties, except for the submarine service and the Marine Corps, are open to female recruits.
The Korps Mariniers is open to women but because of the extremely high physical demands for initial training it is found impossible for women to become a part of the Korps Mariniers.The Dutch Ministry of Defence employs almost 70,000 personnel, including both civilian and military personnel.
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Wikipedia