Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian Armed Forces
القوات المسلحة السعودية‎
Emblem of the Armed Forces
Flag of the Armed Forces
Founded1744; 280 years ago (1744)[1]
Service branches
HeadquartersRiyadh
Leadership
Supreme commander-in-chief King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
Minister of Defense Khalid bin Salman
Chairman of the General Staff Air Chief Marshal Fayyadh Al Ruwaili
Personnel
Military age17[2]
ConscriptionNo[3]
Active personnel257,000[4]
Deployed personnel
11,200[9] (2015 est.)
Expenditure
BudgetUS$75 billion (2023)[10]
(ranked 5th)
Industry
Domestic suppliersKACST
SAMIC
SAMI
PSATRI
SAEC
Foreign suppliers Brazil
 Canada
 China
 Czech Republic
 France
 Germany
 Italy
 Japan
 South Korea
 Netherlands
 Russia
 Singapore
 South Africa
 Sweden
 Taiwan
 Turkey
 United Kingdom
 United States
Related articles
History
RanksKSA military ranks

The Saudi Arabian Armed Forces (SAAF) (Arabic: القوات المسلحة السعودية‎, romanized: Al-Quwwat al-Musallahah al-Malakiyah as-Su’ūdiyah), also known as the Royal Saudi Armed Forces, is part of the military forces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It consists of the Royal Saudi Army, the Royal Saudi Navy, the Royal Saudi Air Force, the Royal Saudi Air Defense, and the Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force. The King of Saudi Arabia is the commander-in-chief of all the military forces and forms military policy with the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of Interior. The five Armed Forces are among eight military forces of Saudi Arabia, with the others including the Royal Saudi National Guard (under the administrative control of the Ministry of National Guard), the Royal Saudi Guard Regiment and the Royal Saudi Border Guards.

The Royal Saudi Armed Forces are one of the best-funded in the world,[11] having the world's sixth largest defense budget.[12]

  1. ^ Sir James Norman Dalrymple Anderson. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Stacey International, 1983. p. 77.
  2. ^ "The World Factbook". Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. Archived from the original on 22 March 2016. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  3. ^ "Middle East: Saudi Arabia". The World Factbook. Langley, Virginia: Central Intelligence Agency. 17 October 2018. Archived from the original on 27 August 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  4. ^ IISS (2022). The Military Balance 2022. Routledge. p. 366. ISBN 978-1-032-27900-8.
  5. ^ Felicia Schwartz; Hakim Almasmari; Asa Fitch (26 March 2015). "Saudi Arabia Launches Military Operations in Yemen". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 24 February 2020. Retrieved 4 August 2017.
  6. ^ Henderson, Simon. "Bahrain's Crisis: Saudi Forces Intervene". Washington Institute. Archived from the original on 4 April 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  7. ^ "Saudi Arabia launches airstrikes in Yemen". CNN. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  8. ^ "Djibouti welcomes Saudi Arabia plan to build a military base". middleeastmonitor.com. 28 November 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  9. ^ Shrivastava, Sanskar (15 March 2011). "Saudi Arabian Troops Enter Bahrain, Bahrain Opposition Calls It War". The World Reporter. Archived from the original on 18 March 2011. Retrieved 15 April 2011.
  10. ^ "Trends in World Military Expenditure, 2022" (PDF). Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. April 2023. Archived (PDF) from the original on 23 April 2023. Retrieved 29 April 2023.
  11. ^ http://uk.businessinsider.com/saudi-arabia-spends-25-of-its-budget-on-its-military-2015-12" Archived 2 January 2016 at the Wayback Machine, 31 December 2015,
  12. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (25 February 2021). The Military Balance 2021. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1032012278.