Qatar Armed Forces

Qatar Armed Forces
القوات المسلحة القطرية
Founded1971
Service branches Qatari Emiri Land Force
 Qatari Emiri Navy
 Qatar Emiri Air Force
Qatar Amiri Guard
HeadquartersDoha
Leadership
Commander-in-chiefSheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani
Prime ministerMohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani
Minister of State for Defence AffairsDr. Khalid bin Mohammad Al Attiyah
Chief of StaffLieutenant General Salem bin Hamad bin Mohammed bin Aqeel Al Nabit
Personnel
Military age18 years of age
Available for
military service
389,487 males, age 15–49 (2010 est.),
210,00 females, age 15–49 (2010 est.)
Fit for
military service
321,974 males, age 15–49 (2010 est.),
140,176 females, age 15–49 (2010 est.)
Reaching military
age annually
96,429 males (2010 est.),
75,162 females (2010 est.)
Active personnel26,550[1]
  • Army 12,500
  • Navy 4,500
  • Air Force 5,000
  • Air Defense 2,650
  • Special Forces 1,900
Reserve personnel4,000[2]
Expenditure
BudgetUS$1.913 billion (2010, no data afterwards)[3]
Percent of GDP2.5% (2016)
Industry
Domestic suppliersBarzan Holdings
Foreign suppliers Australia
 Brazil
 Canada
 China
 France
 Germany
 Italy
 Japan
 South Korea
 Netherlands
 Taiwan
 Turkey
 United Kingdom
 United States
Related articles
HistoryGulf War
Libyan Civil War
Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
Syrian Civil War
RanksMilitary ranks of Qatar
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Soldiers at Military Parade on Qatar National Day on the 18th of December 2018.

The Qatar Armed Forces (Arabic: القوات المسلحة القطرية, romanizedAl-Quwwat Al-Musallahah Al-Qatariyyah) are the military forces of the State of Qatar. Since 2015, Qatar has implemented mandatory military conscription with an average of 2,000 graduates per year.[4] As of 2010, Qatar's defence expenditures added up to a total of $1.913 billion, about 1.5% of the national GDP, according to the SIPRI.[5] Qatar has recently signed defence pacts with the United States in 2002[6] & 2013,[7] with the United Kingdom in 2020, and with France in 1994.

Qatar plays an active role in the collective defense efforts of the Gulf Cooperation Council; the other five members are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, and Oman. Qatar also hosts the largest American military base in the Middle East and in 2017 inaugurated a military attache office in Washington.[8]

SIPRI states that Qatar's plans to transform and significantly enlarge its armed forces have accelerated in 2014, and in 2010-14 Qatar was the 46th largest arms importer in the world. Orders in 2013 for 562 tanks and 75 self-propelled guns from Germany were followed in 2014 by a number of other contracts, including 34 combat helicopters and 3 AEW aircraft from the US, and 6 tanker aircraft from Spain.[9] As of 2016, Qatar maintains advanced anti air and anti ship capabilities with deliveries of Patriot PAC-3 MSE Batteries,[10] Exocet MM40 Block 3 and Marte ER anti-ship missiles.[11]

  1. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (2020). The Military Balance 2020. Routledge. p. 371.
  2. ^ "Number of reserve military personnel in the Middle East and North Africa in 2024, by country". Statista. 19 July 2024. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  3. ^ Wezeman, Pieter (2019). "MILITARY SPENDING AND ARMS IMPORTS BY IRAN, SAUDI ARABIA, QATAR AND THE UAE" (PDF). SIPRI.
  4. ^ "Qatar’s national service program puts new emphasis on military training Archived 2017-07-28 at the Wayback Machine", Doha News. Retrieved 25 June 2017
  5. ^ "The SIPRI Military Expenditure Database". Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 1 January 2015.
  6. ^ U.S. and Qatar Sign Pact to Update Bases, December 12, 2002
  7. ^ Shanker, Thom (12 December 2013). "Hagel Lifts Veil on Major Military Center in Qatar". The New York Times.
  8. ^ "Qatar-Gulf crisis: All the latest updates". aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2017-10-24.
  9. ^ "Trends in International Arms Transfer, 2014". sipri.org. Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
  10. ^ "6/lockheed-martin-providing-additional-pac-3-mses-to-us-army-and-upgrading-pac-3-missiles-for-fms Lockheed Martin providing additional PAC-3 MSEs to US Army and upgrading PAC-3 missiles for FMS Archived 2017-07-28 at the Wayback Machine", Jane's 360. 29 December 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  11. ^ "Qatar signs for MBDA coastal missile system Archived 2017-07-28 at the Wayback Machine", Jane's 360. 02 September 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2017.