The implementation of compulsory border guard service has to be seen in a historical context. Until the 1980s the BGS was organized as a paramilitary force that could be deployed nationwide, either at the inner-German border, but also elsewhere in case of civil disorder. Domestic military operations of any kind on the territory of West Germany were prohibited for the "Bundeswehr" at that time. The BGS used heavy military equipment and the officers were officially combatants until 1994. Furthermore, the member states of the Warsaw Pact maintained a very large number of Internal Troops, mainly staffed by conscript soldiers like the East German Volkspolizei-Bereitschaften (VPB). Interior troops were a considerable reinforcement of the infantry forces during the arms race of the Cold war period and were not affected by disarmament negotiations as they were not part of the regular military.