Moldova Military - 2023

GEOGRAPHICAL NAMES 

Military and security forces

Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova ( Forțele Armate ale Republicii Moldova): National Army (comprised of a General Staff, a Land Forces Command, and an Air Force Command); Ministry of Internal Affairs: General Carabinieri Inspectorate (aka Carabinieri Troops or Trupele de Carabinieri) (2023)

note 1: the Carabinieri is a quasi-militarized gendarmerie responsible for protecting public buildings, maintaining public order, and other national security functions

note 2: the national police force reports to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and is the primary law enforcement body, responsible for internal security, public order, traffic, border security, and criminal investigations; the Moldovan Border Police (Poliției de Frontieră) are under the Ministry of Internal Affairs; prior to 2012, Border Police were under the armed forces and known as the Border Troops

Military expenditures

0.4% of GDP (2022 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2021 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2020 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2019 est.)

0.4% of GDP (2018 est.)

Military and security service personnel strengths

approximately 6,500 active troops; approximately 2,000 Carabinieri (2022)

Military equipment inventories and acquisitions

the military's inventory is limited and almost entirely comprised of older Russian and Soviet-era equipment; in recent years, it has received small amounts of donated material from other nations, including the US (2023)

Military service age and obligation

18-27 years of age for compulsory or voluntary military service; male registration required at age 16; 12-month service obligation (2023)

note: as of 2019, women made up about 20% of the military's full-time personnel

Military - note

Moldova is constitutionally neutral, but has maintained a relationship with NATO since 1992; bilateral cooperation started when Moldova joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace program in 1994; Moldova has contributed small numbers of troops to NATO’s Kosovo Force (KFOR) since 2014, and a civilian NATO liaison office was established in Moldova in 2017 at the request of the Moldovan Government to promote practical cooperation and facilitate support

the 1992 war between Moldovan forces and Transnistrian separatists backed by Russian troops ended with a cease-fire; as of 2022, Russia maintained approximately 1,500 troops in Transnistria, some of which served under the authority of a peacekeeping force known as a Joint Control Commission that also included Moldovan and separatist personnel; the remainder of the Russian contingent (Operational Group of Russian Forces - Transnistria or OGF-T) guarded a depot of Soviet-era ammunition and trained Transnistrian separatist paramilitary troops (2023)

NOTE: The information regarding Moldova on this page is re-published from the 2023 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Moldova 2023 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Moldova 2023 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.