First-time service in Algeria was reduced from 18 months to 12 months in 2014. The total force figures for Algeria’s armed forces are 130,000 active personnel, with a reserve for the army of 150,000 personnel (2018, IISS). In addition, the country has 187,200 semi-military in militias, gendarmerie, security forces and in the Republican Guard.
Defense policy is characterized by the civil war of the 1990s, and since about 2000, increasingly in the fight against terrorism. Algeria has also forged stronger ties with Western countries, including joining the NATO Partnership in the Mediterranean in March 2000 and increasingly training with US and European forces.
Army
The army has a personnel force of 110,000 active personnel, of which 75,000 conscripts. Heavy equipment includes 1467 tanks (572 T-90, 325 T-72, 300 T-62, and 270 T-54 and T-55), 1089 storm tanks and about 807 armored personnel vehicles.
Air Force
The Air Force has a workforce of 14,000 active personnel. Materials include 34 fighter jets (11 MiG-25 and 23 MiG-29), 77 fighter aircraft (44 Su-30 and 34 Su-24), eight reconnaissance aircraft, six tankers, 65 transport aircraft, 99 training aircraft and 175 helicopters, of which 39 combat helicopters (31 Mi-24 and eight Mi-28). In addition, the Air Force operates heavy and medium-heavy drones.
The Navy
The Navy has a workforce of about 6,000 active personnel, of which about 500 are in the Coast Guard. The fleet includes four tactical submarines, eight frigates, seven corvettes, 18 patrol vessels, a minesweeper, one dock landing craft, six landing craft and three logistics and auxiliary vessels. In addition, the coastguard has 55 patrol vessels and nine auxiliary vessels.
The Navy’s aircraft have 18 helicopters, including 5 AW101, 3 AW139 and 10 Super Lynx.
International operations
In 2018, Algeria participated in the UN operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) with three observers.
