Saudi Arabian Military Forces

Saudi Arabian Military Forces
‎القوات العسكرية العربية السعودية
Emblem of the Military Forces
Founded1744; 280 years ago (1744)[1]
Current form1902
Service branches Royal Saudi Land Forces
Royal Saudi Air Force
Royal Saudi Naval Forces
Royal Saudi Air Defense
Royal Saudi Strategic Missile Force
Saudi Arabian National Guard
Saudi Arabian Royal Guard
Saudi Arabian Border Guard
Saudi Arabian Emergency Force
Special Security Forces
Special Security Unit
HeadquartersRiyadh
Leadership
Supreme CommanderKing Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud
Personnel
Military age17[2]
ConscriptionNo[3]
Active personnel480,700
Deployed personnel
11,200[7] (2015 est.)
Expenditure
BudgetUS$48.5 billion (9th)[8]
Industry
Domestic suppliersRoyal City
SAMIC
SAMI
PSATRI
SAEC
Foreign suppliers Australia
 Brazil
 Canada
 China
 Czech Republic
 France
 Germany
 Indonesia
 Italy
 Japan
 South Korea
 Netherlands
 Poland
 Russia
 Singapore
 South Africa
 Sweden
 Taiwan
 Turkey
 Ukraine
 United Kingdom
 United States
Related articles
History
RanksKSA military ranks

The Saudi Arabian Military Forces (Arabic: ‎القوات العسكرية العربية السعودية Al-Quwwat al-Askariyah Arabīyah as-Su’ūdiyah) (SAMF) is the umbrella term for all the military forces of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Although militarized in nature, each is independent of the other in that they fall under the control of different ministries and/or chain of command. They include: the Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia (under the Ministry of Defense), the Saudi Arabian National Guard (under the Ministry of National Guard), the Saudi Arabian Border Guard (under the Ministry of Interior), the Saudi Arabian Royal Guard (under the Presidency of the Royal Guard), the Special Operations Forces (under the Presidency of State Security), and the Special Security Unit (affiliated with the General Intelligence Presidency).

The King of Saudi Arabia is the supreme commander of all military forces. The current king is Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.

  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. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  4. ^ Felicia Schwartz; Hakim Almasmari; Asa Fitch (26 March 2015). "Saudi Arabia Launches Military Operations in Yemen". The Wall Street Journal.
  5. ^ Henderson, Simon. "Bahrain's Crisis: Saudi Forces Intervene". Washington Institute. Archived from the original on 4 April 2016. Retrieved 19 March 2016.
  6. ^ "Saudi Arabia launches airstrikes in Yemen". CNN. 26 March 2015. Archived from the original on 26 March 2015. Retrieved 26 March 2015.
  7. ^ 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.
  8. ^ International Institute for Strategic Studies (25 February 2021). The Military Balance 2021. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1032012278.