In the modern world, only four countries have a million-strong army: China, the United States, North Korea and India. In the modern world, only four countries have a million-strong army: China, the United States, North Korea and India The country with the smallest army
The dwarf republic of San Marino is located in the south of Europe, on the slopes of Mount Titano (738 m) and is surrounded on all sides by the territory of Italy (the Marche and Emilia-Romagna regions). San Marino area - 60.57 sq. km, which is divided into so-called "castles" or districts: San Marino, Acquaviva, Borgo Maggiore, Chiesanuova, Montegiardino and Serravalle. The capital of the Republic - the city of San Marino - is located almost at the top of Mount Titano. 4.5 thousand inhabitants live here. The Adriatic Sea and the city of Rimini are 22 km away. The population - Sanmarinians - is about 30 thousand people. 95% - Catholics, 19% - Italians. Every year more than 3 million tourists from all over the world come to San Marino to see with their own eyes medieval monuments (both real and their imitations), the government palace and the Walloni Palace, the churches of San Francesco and San Quirino, to see the ruins of the castles of Guaita, Chesta and Montale, admire the sea with viewing platforms and finally send home a postcard with a local postage stamp.
According to the legend about the formation of San Marino, a Dalmatian stone carver named Marino, a native of the island of Rab in present-day Croatia, settled here with a group of Christian supporters to avoid the persecution of Emperor Diocletian.
Despite repeated attempts to conquer San Marino (by neighboring cities and the papal state), thanks to the proud spirit of its people, the inaccessibility of the territory surrounded by the triple belt of fortress walls, and the brilliant leadership, the state of San Marino retained its independence for many centuries. In questions foreign policy The Republic of San Marino also adheres to neutrality and itself decides on issues of political asylum on its territory. It has its own army, which is a military unit with special functions. In 1740, a national guard armed with swords was created to protect members of parliament, and a gendarmerie to maintain public order. San Marino has its own national flag, but no money. Since 1953, an agreement has been concluded with Italy, according to which the latter pays monetary compensation to San Marino for the lack of its own currency and restrictions on construction (casinos, radio stations), which, however, was canceled in 1987. But the postage stamp of San Marino is known and appreciated by philatelists.
The state of San Marino has not joined the European Union, but mints a European coin with the image of its main attractions on one of its sides. Only a few people know about the even smaller but charming town of San Leo located next to San Marino. The castle of San Leo, which has survived to this day, was called by the medieval politician and philosopher Machiavelli the most beautiful military redoubt in Italy. And for Dante, the castle, whose sheer bastions rise above the graceful cobbled square of the town, served as inspiration for writing some parts of Purgatory.
Area - 61 km.
Population - 25 thousand people
Official language - Italian
In 64, when Rome was destroyed by a tremendous fire, Emperor Nero blamed the Christians for this. Since then, for many years they were subjected to persecution and painful executions. Tradition says that in 301, a member of one of the first Christian communities, the stonemason Marino and his friends found refuge in the Apennines, on the top of Mount Titano. Soon the community declared independence. Thus, the most ancient European state arose on Italian soil. Later, the Catholic Church canonized Christian Marino as a saint. Hence the name of the state of San Marino (literally "Saint Marino"), which has existed since 301.
Almost all the indigenous people of this tiny country are relatives by marriage, blood relatives or, finally, just good neighbors and acquaintances. In other words, the population of the state represents several overgrown large patriarchal families. Traditionally, heads of families meet twice a year to discuss in an informal setting family problems. Sanmarinians consider such meetings, perhaps, more authoritative than meetings of the Sanmarinian parliament - the Grand General Council.
The heads of state in San Marino are two Captains Regent. It has long been a tradition that every Sanmarinian, addressing even one of the co-rulers, had to use the plural. According to linguists, it was from San Marino that the custom of using the pronoun plural"you" for polite treatment.
Naturally, with such nepotism, it is very difficult to be impartial in court proceedings. Therefore, according to the law and in the name of justice, only foreigners can work here as policemen and judges. The population of this tiny country is employed in small-scale engineering and chemical industries, in agriculture and serving tourists, and there are up to 3 million of them a year!
During the First World War, the Republic of San Marino became an ally of the Entente; 15 soldiers took up arms. During World War II, the republic declared neutrality, but this did not save it from a two-week German occupation. Today, 51 soldiers and 34 officers serve in the army of San Marino. A military parade is held four times a year. Soldiers dressed in bright uniforms and armed with carbines of the 19th century walk along the narrow streets of the capital - the city of San Marino.
The Republic of San Marino is surrounded on all sides by Italian territory. In order to visit Rome, Venice or visit the beaches of the Adriatic Sea on a weekend, it is enough to buy a train ticket. The railway tunnel runs under Monte Titano. However, relations with Italy were not always cloudless, and the borders were "transparent". In 1951, the government of San Marino decided to open a casino (gambling house) and build a powerful television and radio station. Italy protested and announced a blockade of San Marino. For several months the borders were closed, and in the end the dwarf state succumbed to power.
The leadership of Luxembourg has decided to double its military contingent in the African Republic of Mali. A small state in Europe will send two soldiers to the Black Continent, not one. The task of the military will include training Malian soldiers and police.
Earlier, France turned to European countries for help after a series of coordinated attacks in Paris that killed 130 people. The French authorities appealed to paragraph 42.7 of the Lisbon Treaty, which provides that member states must come to the aid of the country that will need it.
Luxembourg responded to this call and sent one soldier.
However, soon in in social networks there were jokes about the significance of Luxembourg's contribution to the fight against international terrorism and the Islamic State (an Islamist group banned in Russia). In particular, ironic entries appeared on Twitter: “Tremble, terrorists!”, “ISIS, the game is over” or “(ISIS’s Arabic abbreviation), get ready. Luxembourg is coming."
According to the Luxembourg newspaper Luxemburger Wort, the second soldier will arrive at the deployment site in Mali on a training mission in early 2016.
Luxembourg has also pledged €2 million to the Malian military to help fight terrorists. The money will be used for education and training, the purchase of equipment and medical supplies, as well as campaigning aimed primarily at children and young people in order to prevent the growth of sympathy for the radicals.
In total, there are seven so-called dwarf countries in Europe.
These are the states whose population does not exceed 500 thousand people. These include Andorra, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Vatican City, San Marino and Iceland. Some of them have their own armed forces, and the most numerous of them are just Luxembourgish, as well as Maltese.
Luxembourg
Despite the small size of the duchy, it has repeatedly found itself at the epicenter of various major military conflicts of the Old World - Thirty Years' War, Napoleonic and Franco-Prussian wars.
Officially, the army of Luxembourg appeared in 1881. During the First and Second World Wars, the territory of the state was quickly occupied by German troops, and the army units of the duchy were disarmed.
In 1941, a police battalion of Nazi Germany was formed from the Luxembourgers, and a little later the recruitment of the inhabitants of the duchy into the Wehrmacht began.
However, many of them did not want to serve, the Luxembourgers often deserted from the Nazi army.
After World War II, Luxembourg joined NATO.
He took part in the Korean War, where an infantry company of 44 military personnel of the duchy operated together with the Belgian contingent.
In 1967, the armed forces of this country began to be recruited on a voluntary basis.
Currently, the armed forces of Luxembourg consist of an infantry battalion, as well as two reconnaissance companies (about 900 people in total).
The military of this country uses weapons produced in Western Europe and NATO. Thus, the fighters use American M2 machine guns, Austrian Steyr automatic rifles, Glock pistols, US-made TOW anti-tank guided missiles, German 81-mm mortars (six pieces). The Luxembourg Army uses MAN vehicles, Humvee SUVs (including the armored M1114), Mercedes-Benz 300GD and Jeep Wrangler.
The Luxembourg intelligence companies have two special forces platoons that are part of the so-called Rapid Deployment Force. Also in Luxembourg there are gendarmerie units, which, if necessary, can be involved in protecting the state and assisting the army. In total, there are 612 gendarmes in the duchy.
In 1996, the Luxembourg Armed Forces unit became part of the Eurocorps. Luxembourg's military spending is just over $550 million.
Luxembourg has been involved in several military conflicts.
So, in the war in Afghanistan, in the summer of 2003, an infantry unit of ten servicemen was sent to the force. Also, 23 soldiers of the duchy participated in a peacekeeping mission in Kosovo, and women citizens of this state also served there. One of them, Tessie Anthony, later married Prince Louis of Luxembourg. The couple had two sons.
In addition, in 2003 Luxembourg allowed the passage military service in the armed forces of the country to citizens of other EU states residing in the country for at least 36 months (after completing their service, they can acquire Luxembourg citizenship).
As a result, in the period up to May 2015, about 300 foreigners signed up for the Luxembourg armed forces.
Higher military rank in the army of Luxembourg - colonel. There are no generals in this country.
San Marino
The San Marino army has just under 100 men and is one of the smallest in the world.
The main part of the armed forces of the state is involved in ceremonial events associated with national holidays and meetings of foreign government delegations.
There is no conscription in this country, all citizens from 16 to 55 years old can be called up or voluntarily join special military units.
The main military contingent is the palace guard corps. His duties include guarding the Republican Palace, patrolling the country's borders, and assisting the San Marino police. For various ceremonies in the building is provided different shape, mainly green and red colors are used in it. They are armed with Austrian-made military Glock pistols, as well as Italian Beretta BM59 rifles of 1959, which the military uses on guard duty.
The armed forces of San Marino have several formations consisting of volunteers who devote part of their time to the service, and part to civilian work not related to the army.
These include, in particular, the artillery company of the palace guard, whose duties include the symbolic firing of an old cannon at ceremonial events in the Republic Square in San Marino.
In addition, the army of the state has a paramilitary militia company, which is intended both to participate in solemn ceremonies and to assist the police and gendarmerie. For parades, policemen are given old muskets with bayonets and sabers, and for daily service they are given modern dark blue uniforms and weapons.
Service in the police is considered an honorable occupation among the citizens of the country.
Only those citizens of San Marino who have been living in the state without a break for six years can be enrolled there. Both men and women are taken to the police, however, representatives of the stronger sex predominate among the military personnel of this unit.
In addition, San Marino has a gendarmerie with two brigades. This structure is not directly part of the army of San Marino. One brigade is called the criminal police brigade, and the second is called the mobile brigade. The gendarmes can be assigned to reinforce the police, if necessary, to perform tasks related to ensuring state security, or they can be sent to help the soldiers of the palace guard corps to protect the border.
But the military orchestra of the state is part of the armed forces, where more than 40 musicians serve.
According to open data, San Marino's defense spending is approximately $700,000.
Principality of Monaco
This state, which is second only to the Vatican in terms of area, nevertheless has its own armed forces, which, unlike most countries, are subordinate to the Department of the Interior.
In total, in this state there are about 255 military personnel and another 35 civilian personnel of the army.
Some functions of the army in Monaco have been transferred to the police special forces, such as the protection of the land border and water lines. For this, a naval and helicopter police company has been created. It has, in particular, four patrol boats and two high-speed ones.
The armed forces directly include the Monaco fire corps and the carabinieri company of the prince of the state.
The main task of the Carabinieri is to protect the prince and the princely palace in Monaco-Ville, located in the old district of Monaco. In addition, members of the corps are involved in the protection of members of the judiciary who administer justice on behalf of the Prince of Monaco.
There is a company of carabinieri and special units: a detachment of motorcyclists (for quick response and escort of the princely motorcade), a detachment of scuba divers and a first aid unit. The carabinieri company also includes a military band, as well as a squad participating in the traditional changing of the guard at 11.55 at the Prince's Palace of Monaco.
Most of the Carabinieri had previously served in the French armed forces. There is also an agreement between states on military aid, according to which official Paris undertakes to provide protection to Monaco in the event of a serious military threat.
And although the military personnel of the principality have not participated in military conflicts for a long time,
in the middle of the twentieth century there was a case when the country's army was alerted due to the aggravation of relations with France.
The reason was that the leadership of Monaco created a very liberal system for banks and other companies, and French commercial and credit organizations were often registered in Monaco, but operated in the French state. This made it impossible for Paris to collect taxes from these organizations. This situation, which took place in 1962, is recalled by Jules Richard, who at the time of the events described worked in the branch of a French company in Monte Carlo.
“The fate of Monaco hung in the balance. French President General de Gaulle threatened the Principality to cut off electricity and water supply if it does not stop poaching bankers and impose income tax. Eighty carabinieri of the Royal Palace and 207 Monegasque police were alerted. Fortunately, the war did not happen. The prince made concessions ... ”Richard said. His story was later published in Vokrug Sveta magazine.
Malta
The armed forces of this country were formed relatively recently - in 1974, when Malta was declared a republic. The formation of the army began on the basis of an artillery battery located in the ancient fortress of this country.
Now the army of this island state includes land, naval and air force components, which is rare for dwarf states.
True, the Maltese Air Force does not have strike aircraft. They consist of five military transport helicopters and four aircraft, performing tasks of patrolling the country's territorial waters.
The Malta Ground Forces constitute a full-fledged infantry brigade, consisting of three battalions. Soldiers and officers of the formation are armed with Italian Beretta 92 pistols, German Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine guns, Belgian FN-FAL automatic rifles and FN Mini light machine guns. The artillery of Malta is represented exclusively by small-caliber anti-aircraft guns. Anti-aircraft gunners of this country use 40-mm Swedish Bofors 40 guns, as well as Soviet ZPU-4 installations.
The Maltese army also has one Chinese-made T-34 tank.
and several Italian Iveco trucks and British Breford.
The Malta Navy consists of eight patrol boats and small patrol ships collected in Australia, USA and Finland.
The army of Malta is involved in the European Union's operation Atalanta against pirates operating in the African Gulf, as well as in training the armed forces of Somalia as part of the training program for the military of this state by specialists from the EU.
The Maltese armed forces number about 2 thousand people.
The military budget of the country is €42 million.
Iceland
This Scandinavian island nation is the only NATO member that
officially does not have its own armed forces.
However, in Iceland there is a Coast Guard unit, which includes air defense countries. It consists of 130 personnel, three patrol ships, one patrol boat, one DHC-8-300 MSA aircraft and three helicopters. The country's air defense consists of four surveillance radars.
The countries of the North Atlantic Alliance provide patrolling of the Icelandic airspace and other armed protection.
Vatican
In 1970, Pope Paul VI dissolved the armed forces, but in 2002 another pontiff, John Paul II, restored one of their components - the gendarme corps. He is responsible for security, public order, border control, control traffic, Criminal Investigation and other general police duties in the Vatican.
About 130 people serve in it.
The gendarmes are armed with Austrian Glock 17 pistols, Beretta M12 and Heckler & Koch MP5 submachine guns. In addition, the special forces of the Vatican gendarmerie use Italian and German-made pump-action shotguns.
To enter the service of the Papal Gendarmerie, a person must be between the ages of 20 and 25, have Italian citizenship and at least two years of experience in the Italian police.
The Vatican also has a ceremonial Swiss Guard. it military formation pope of Rome. However, it is not subject to the structures of the Vatican City State.
In addition, there are two more dwarf states in Europe -
Andorra and Liechtenstein, which deliberately abandoned their own army,
and their protection is carried out by neighboring states.
There are small, strong, numerous, highly intelligent, weak armies, with different levels of combat capability, and there is the most beautiful army in which women serve on an equal basis with men.
The most beautiful army
The State of Israel, which is in a state of permanent war, has an army in which not only men serve, as in many countries, women are also called to serve. Military service is compulsory for all citizens of this country. Men serve thirty-six months, women twenty-four.Few people manage to avoid service. Almost everyone is subject to the call, regardless of health problems. In the Israeli army, there is a job for everyone. In this army high level material and technical base, the newest types of weapons.
The Israeli army is the most intelligent, and also the most beautiful army in the world. This army was awarded the title of the most beautiful thanks to the female contingent in its ranks. And this is not surprising, because it's nice to watch how young girls perform combat missions.
The smallest army
Among the smallest states is the Republic of San Marino, located in southern Europe. It is surrounded by Italian territory. Only thirty thousand people live on an area of about sixty kilometers. For many centuries attempts were made to seize this republic, but it remained independent. This was facilitated by skillful leadership, the proud spirit of the people, the location on the mountain (Mount Titano) and the fact that San Marino is surrounded by three belts of fortress walls. 
The republic has its own army. This is a military unit endowed with special functions. Members of Parliament are protected national guard. It is known that the republic was an ally of the Entente during the First World War, fifteen soldiers stood up under arms.
Today, the army of San Marino is seventy-nine people - officers and soldiers. A military parade is held four times a year. Dressed in colorful uniforms, armed with nineteenth-century carbines, they march through the streets of San Marino. There is no mandatory conscription in the republic. This is a voluntary matter.
Monaco also has a small army, where the army is only eighty-three people. One hundred and ten people make up the army of the Vatican.
The most efficient army
It is not at all easy to unequivocally say which army is the most combat-ready today, since many indicators affect this. It is known that the level of combat capability does not depend on funding, but on devotion to the fatherland, ideology, principles, nuclear potential, the availability of the latest developments in military engineering, etc.To determine the level of combat readiness of armies in peacetime, one can take into account such basic factors as the numerical strength, quality and quantity of weapons, and the quality of training of commanders.
The armies of such powers as China, Russia and the United States are more often compared. It is known that in terms of the size of the army in the first place is China. In terms of the number of tanks, Russia leads, in the number of combat helicopters, aircraft, warships of the fleet - America. The United States also has the highest quality weapons.
There are far more Russian-made weapons in China than in Russia itself. The armies of China and America are professional. The military has many benefits and a good salary. There is no universal conscription.
It can be concluded that it is China and America that have the most combat-ready armies, but this assessment is relative. So, don't forget about Israeli army, which has not yet lost in a single war. Noteworthy are the troops of NATO, North Korea, Pakistan and India. We should not forget about the partisan army, which proved to be very combat-ready in the light of recent military conflicts. So far, no one has been able to defeat her.
A certain rating has been compiled, where the armies of countries are arranged in descending order depending on their combat capability as of 2013. First up is the US Army. The second position was taken by the huge Chinese army. Israel is in third position, and Russia is in fourth. In fifth place is the North Korean army. The sixth place in terms of combat effectiveness was taken by the Indian army, and the seventh by the Turkish army.
The largest army in the world
It is well known that China is the leader in terms of the number of armed forces. There are more than two and a half million servicemen in the army of this country. For China, this is not the limit. Since China is the largest country in the world, the army per population does not seem like much. The share of military personnel in total number population is only 0.2 percent.There are one million four hundred thousand military personnel in the United States, and one million three hundred thousand in India. Next comes the North Korean army. The Russian army is in fifth place in terms of numbers, it has one million two hundred and seventy thousand people. Following are the armies of South Korea, Pakistan, Iran, Iraq and Turkey.
The Russian Defense Ministry plans to increase the number of contractors in the coming years. At the same time, the authorities will modernize the system of staffing the army with conscripts.
But the army is made not only by people, but also by weapons. In some rifles, bullets fly out of the barrel at a speed of 900 meters per second. You can also read more about the most powerful rifles on the website.
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Emblem of the San Marino Armed Forces
75-100 people
Armed forces Republic of San Marino- consist of a permanent contingent of 80-100 people.
The main part of the armed forces of the state is involved in ceremonial events associated with national holidays and meetings of foreign government delegations.
Mandatory conscription no, but all citizens between 16 and 55 years old can be drafted or volunteer to join special military units.
The cost of the army included in the budget of the country is 700,000 US dollars (According to 2001).
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An excerpt characterizing the Armed Forces of San Marino
“Oh, the damned Germans, they don’t know their land,” said another.What division are you? shouted the adjutant as he drove up.
- Eighteenth.
"So why are you here?" you should have been ahead long ago, now you won’t get through until evening.
- These are stupid orders; they don’t know what they are doing,” the officer said and drove off.
Then a general drove by and angrily shouted something not in Russian.
“Tafa lafa, and what he mumbles, you can’t make out anything,” the soldier said, mimicking the general who had left. “I would have shot them, scoundrels!”
- At the ninth hour it was ordered to be on the spot, but we didn’t get even half. Here are the orders! – repeated from different sides.
And the feeling of energy with which the troops went into action began to turn into annoyance and anger at the stupid orders and at the Germans.
The reason for the confusion was that during the movement of the Austrian cavalry, marching on the left flank, the higher authorities found that our center was too far from the right flank, and the entire cavalry was ordered to move to the right side. Several thousand cavalry advanced ahead of the infantry, and the infantry had to wait.
Ahead there was a clash between an Austrian column leader and a Russian general. The Russian general shouted, demanding that the cavalry be stopped; the Austrian argued that it was not he who was to blame, but the higher authorities. The troops meanwhile stood, bored and discouraged. After an hour's delay, the troops finally moved on and began to descend downhill. The mist that dispersed on the mountain only spread thicker in the lower parts, where the troops descended. Ahead, in the fog, one shot, another shot rang out, at first clumsily at different intervals: a draft ... tat, and then more and more smoothly and more often, and the affair began over the Goldbach River.
Modern China has the largest armed forces in the world - 2.3 million people. About a million more Chinese citizens are reservists. The top five in terms of the number of active armies also includes the United States (1.4 million); India (1.3 million); North Korea (1.1 million); Russia (700 thousand).
Leading by the number of reservists North Korea- 8.2 million people will be put under arms in case of war. According to this indicator, the leadership is also held by the countries of Eastern and South-East Asia: Vietnam (5 million); Bangladesh (2.4 million); India (2.1 million); Taiwan (1.6 million). There are 2 million reservists in Russia - the fifth place in the world according to this indicator.
The DPRK is also considered the most militarized society, where there are 45 military personnel per 1,000 people. It is followed by South Ossetia (34.7 people); Eritrea (33.1 people); Israel (22.2 people) and Brunei (18 people). In Russia, there are five servicemen per 1,000 inhabitants.
The combined number of security officials and people working in organizations that use weapons in Russia is equal to 22.7 per 1,000 people. In Europe, this figure is higher only in Belarus - 49 people.
The dwarf state of San Marino, located on the Apennine Peninsula, has the smallest army in the world - 80 people. True, the army of a dwarf state performs not so much military as police functions - its main task is to protect law and order in the country.
During the First World War, the army of San Marino sided with the Entente. 15 people were put under arms. During the Second World War, despite the declared neutrality, the state was subjected to a two-week German occupation. This was the reason for the British aviation to carry out an air raid on San Marino, which resulted in the death of several dozen people.
Today in San Marino there is no compulsory conscription, but all citizens between the ages of 16 and 55 can be called up if necessary or enter the service voluntarily. In 2001, San Marino's annual defense spending was $700,000.
Only 10 countries of the world have armed forces, the number of military personnel in which is less than a thousand people: Antigua and Barbuda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Seychelles and others.
