Armed Forces of the Dominican Republic
The Armed Forces of the Dominican Republic (Spanish: Fuerzas Armadas de la República Dominicana) are the military forces of the Dominican Republic. They consist of approximately 56,000 active duty personnel. The president is the commander in chief of the Armed Forces of the Dominican Republic and the Ministry of Defense (Spanish: Ministerio de Defensa de la República Dominicana) is the chief managing body of the armed forces. The primary missions of the Armed Forces of the Dominican Republic are to defend the nation and protect the territorial integrity of the country. The Armed Forces of Dominican Republic are the strongest army in the Caribbean after Cuba.
| Armed Forces of the Dominican Republic | |
|---|---|
| Fuerzas Armadas de la República Dominicana | |
| Service branches | Dominican Army Dominican Navy Dominican Air Force |
| Website | Official website |
| Leadership | |
| Commander-in-chief | President Luis Abinader |
| Minister of Defence | Lieutenant general Carlos Luciano Díaz Morfa |
| Personnel | |
| Military age | 18-50 years of age |
| Conscription | No |
| Available for military service | 2,239,309, age 15–49 |
| Fit for military service | 1,405,844, age 15–49 |
| Reaching military age annually | 86,569 |
| Active personnel | 49,700 |
| Expenditures | |
| Budget | $585 million |
| Percent of GDP | 0.70% of GDP |
| Industry | |
| Foreign suppliers | Belgium Brazil Czech Republic France Israel Spain United States |
| Related articles | |
| History | Dominican War of Independence Dominican Restoration War World War II Dominican Civil War 2003 invasion of Iraq |
| Ranks | Military ranks of the Dominican Republic |
The Army, with 28,750 active duty personnel, consists of six infantry brigades, an air cavalry squadron and a combat service support brigade. The Air Force operates two main bases, one in southern region near Santo Domingo and one in the northern region of the country, the air force operates approximately 40 aircraft including helicopters. The Navy maintains three ageing vessels which were donated from the United States, around 25 patrol crafts and interceptor boats and two helicopters.
There is a counter-terrorist group formed by members of the three branches. This group is highly trained in counter-terrorism missions. The armed forces participate fully in counter-illegal drug trade efforts, for this task, there is a taskforce known as DEPROSER 24/7 (DEfender, PROteger y SERvir). They also are active in efforts to control contraband and illegal immigration from Haiti to the Dominican Republic and from the Dominican Republic to the United States (via illegal transportation of immigrants to Puerto Rico).