Basic Knowledge About Armed Forces

The Armed Forces is a government-sponsored organization of a country that is tasked to take care of defense and battle against enemies of the state. The body exists to further domestic and foreign policies of a government, which needs defense from internal and external aggressors. In many cases, the term ‘armed force’ is used to refer to a task of using armed forces in achieving numerous political objectives.

Military science is the study of basic use of armed forces. In broad terms, it includes consideration of offense and defense in three levels, namely, tactics, operational art, and strategy. All three study application of use of force in the achievement of desired goals.

In many countries, especially the United States and the United Kingdom, armed forces are classified or divided into specific forces: army, air force, navy, and paramilitary police force (or gendarmerie). Paramilitary police forces are not adapted or existent in most Anglo-Saxon nations for political and logical reasons. Likewise, not all countries have navy because geographically, not all nations are geographically gifted with sea waters.

Many small countries establish a single organization for their armed forces. Such single bodies encompass all armed forces that are employed by the government. Third-world armies usually consist of infantry. First-world armies have bigger units that man expensive equipment.

Armed forces could also be organized into ‘standing forces’ (regular army) that is involved in no other profession or work other than to carefully prepare and engage on warfare. Some countries have citizen army, as in the case of Switzerland. Citizen army or reserve army could be mobilized and formed only when there is a pressing national need. Governments keep reserve armies for practical reasons. However, citizen army is often less organized and less trained, making it almost futile and unreliable in serious cases.

The United States and the United Kingdom have five forces within their armed forces, namely, army, air force, navy, coast guard, and marines). Germany has army, navy, air force, joint support services, and central medical services. Egypt has four: army, air force, navy, and air defense). Italy has army, air force, navy, financial police, and military police. South Africa has army, air force, navy, and military health service, while the Netherlands has army, navy, air force, and military police. The culture between various branches of a nation’s armed force could be varied in logical reasons.

Why is there a need for any country to establish and maintain armed forces? The obvious advantage is that there is assured protection from any foreign threats. The armed force is also tasked to protect the government of the people against internal conflicts. In the past years, the armed forces have been used as emergency civil support especially for post-disaster conditions.

However, the institution could also pose harm and threats to the society as a whole. This is because some military men are keeping on figuring in at counter-productive warfare. Costs on science and technology for the development of systems and weapons could be very costly.