Romanian Armed Forces: Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force; Ministry of Internal Affairs: Romanian Gendarmerie (2021)
Bulgarian Armed Forces: Land Forces (Army), Naval Forces, Bulgarian Air Forces (Voennovazdushni Sili, VVS), Joint Special Forces; Ministry of Interior: Border Guards (2021)
Military service age and obligation
conscription ended 2006; 18 years of age for male and female voluntary service; all military inductees (including women) contract for an initial 5-year term of service, with subsequent successive 3-year terms until age 36 (2019)
18-27 years of age for voluntary military service; conscription ended in 2007; service obligation 6-9 months (2019)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
2.07% of GDP (2020 est.)
1.84% of GDP (2019)
1.81% of GDP (2018)
1.72% of GDP (2017)
1.41% of GDP (2016)
1.6% of GDP (2020 est.)
3.15% of GDP (2019)
1.45% of GDP (2018)
1.23% of GDP (2017)
1.25% of GDP (2016)
Military - note
Romania officially became a member of NATO in 2004
Bulgaria officially became a member of NATO in 2004
Military and security service personnel strengths
the Romanian Armed Forces have approximately 67,000 active duty personnel (50,000 Land Forces; 7,000 Naval Forces; 10,000 Air Force; note: 10-15,000 personnel are considered joint service) (2021)
the Bulgarian Armed Forces have approximately 30,000 active duty personnel (16,000 Army; 4,000 Navy; 7,000 Air Force; 3,000 other, joint staff, support) (2021)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the inventory of the Romanian Armed Forces is comprised mostly of Soviet-era and older domestically-produced weapons systems; there is also a smaller mix of Western-origin equipment; Italy, Portugal (second-hand fighter aircraft), and the US are the leading suppliers of armaments to Romania since 2010 (2020)
the Bulgarian Armed Forces inventory consists primarily of Soviet-era equipment, although in recent years Bulgaria has procured limited amounts of more modern weapons systems from Western countries, including France, Italy, Norway, and the US (2020)
