Bolivia Military

Bolivia is a landlocked country located in the heart of South America. It covers an area of 1,098,581 square kilometers and has a population of approximately 11.4 million people. Bolivia is a presidential republic with an independent judiciary and legislative branch. Its military consists of the Armed Forces of Bolivia (FAB), which includes ground forces, air wing, and naval forces. The FAB is responsible for defending Bolivia against external aggression and maintaining internal security. Additionally, it provides assistance to civil authorities in times of emergency or disasters. The FAB also participates in regional peacekeeping operations and contributes personnel to UN missions overseas. The Ministry of Defense is responsible for overseeing the FAB’s operations and ensuring that it meets its national defense objectives. See naturegnosis to learn more about the country of Bolivia.

Defense

A bilateral agreement is the end between Venezuela and Bolivia aimed at strengthening Bolivia’s defense during crises. The ongoing reorientation against Venezuela is a trend break. To see related acronyms about this country, please check ABBREVIATIONFINDER where you can see that BOL stands for Bolivia.

Bolivia Army

Land area 1,098,581 km²
Total population 11,639,909
Residents per km² 10.6
Capital Sucre (official); La Paz (seat of government)
Official language Spanish, Quechua, Aymara
Income per capita 7,600 USD
Currency Boliviano
ISO 3166 code BO
Internet TLD .bo
License plate BOL
Telephone code +591
Time zone UTC -4
Geographic coordinates 17 00 S, 65 00 W.

The defense, which is based on selective military service with an initial service of 12 months, comprises (2008) approximately 46,000 men and is organized into 10 small divisions with 54 patrol boats, 33 fighter aircraft and 15 armed helicopters. Half-military police forces amount to 37,000 men, of which a special drug police of 6,000 men. The material is semi-modern and of Western origin.

Defense costs decreased in 1985-2006 from 2.0% to 1.4% of GDP. Bolivia participates in some of the UN peacekeeping efforts, including in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and in Congo (Kinshasa) (MONUC).

Bolivia’s defense overview

Bolivia has voluntary military service with 12 months of first-time service. Bolivia became a pacifist state by the constitutional amendment in 2009, and the military can only be used for defense. The total force figures for Bolivia’s armed forces are 34 100 active personnel (2018, IISS). In addition, about 37 100 semi-military police forces are arriving.

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Army

The army has a workforce of 22,800 active personnel, including 13,000 conscripts. Material comprising 54 light tanks category Kürassier, about 148 armored personnel carriers and two armored fighters. In addition, the Army has medium-heavy artillery, light air defense artillery, four light transport aircraft and seven helicopters.

Air Force

The Air Force has a workforce of 6500 active personnel. The equipment includes 88 transport aircraft, 30 training aircraft (22 of which can also be used as light attack aircraft) and 36 helicopters. In addition, the Air Force has light air defense artillery.

The Navy

The Navy has a workforce of 4800 active personnel, including 1,700 Marines. The fleet includes three patrol vessels and three auxiliary vessels.

International operations

Bolivia participated in 2018 with observers and a small number of personnel in the UN operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), in Sudan (UNAMID) and in South Sudan (UNMISS).