Finnish Defence Forces

The Finnish Defence Forces (Finnish: Puolustusvoimat) consist of 34,700 people in uniform (27,300 army, 3,000 navy, and 4,400 air force). Finland's defence budget equals about 2% of the GDP. A universal male conscription is in place, under which all men above 18 years of age serve from 6 to 12 months, although service for Jehovah's Witnesses is not mandatory and inhabitants of Åland have a different system in place. Also a 13-month-long non-military service is possible. As of 1995, women were permitted to serve on a voluntary basis. The defence is based on a large trained reserve. Finland can mobilize 490,000 trained military personnel in a crisis situation.

External links

• Finnish Defence Forces
• Finnish Peacekeeping Operations (in Finnish)