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Norway Military Profile

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Military branchesNorwegian Armed Forces:  Norwegian Army (Haeren), Royal Norwegian Navy (Kongelige Norske Sjoeforsvaret; includes Coastal Rangers and Coast Guard (Kystvakt)), Royal Norwegian Air Force (Kongelige Norske Luftforsvaret), Norwegian Special Forces, Norwegian Cyber Defense, Home Guard (Heimevernet, HV) (2021)
Military service age and obligation19-35 years of age for male and female selective compulsory military service; 17 years of age for male volunteers (16 in wartime); 18 years of age for women; 19-month service obligation; conscripts first serve 12 months from 19-28, and then up to 4-5 refresher training periods until age 35, 44, 55, or 60 depending on rank and function (2019)

note - Norway was the first NATO country to allow females to serve in all combat arms branches of the military (1988); it also has an all-female commando unit known as Jegertroppen (The Hunter Troop), which was established in 2014
Military expenditures - percent of GDP2% of GDP (2020 est.)

1.86% of GDP (2019)

1.73% of GDP (2018)

1.72% of GDP (2017)

1.74% of GDP (2016)
Military and security service personnel strengthsthe Norwegian Armed Forces have approximately 23,000 active personnel (8,500 Army; 3,500 Navy; 3,500 Air Force; 7,500 other, including special operations, cyber, joint staff, intelligence, logistics support, active Home Guard, etc.); 40,000 Home Guard (2021)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitionsthe Norwegian Armed Forces inventory includes mostly imported European and US weapons systems, as well as a limited mix of domestically-produced equipment, particularly small naval craft; since 2010, the US is the leading supplier of weapons systems to Norway, followed by a variety of other countries, including France, Italy, South Korea, and Spain (2020)
Military deployments120 Lithuania (NATO) (2021)
Military - noteNorway is a member of NATO and was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty (also known as the Washington Treaty) in 1949

Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021

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