page_title: Qatar Armed Forces
section_title: Army
hierarchical_section_title: Qatar Armed Forces / Military branches / Army
caption_attribution_description: English: A Qatar armed forces sergeant evacuates a casualty of a simulated ballistic missile attack during an exercise scenario in Doha, Qatar, April 30. Emergency responders from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates acted quickly as smoke bombs and fake grenades produced explosion sounds simulating a ballistic missile strike, resulting in a chemical and biological outbreak and mass casualties. The scenario took place as a part of Exercise Eagle Resolve 2013. (U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Kenny Holston/Released)
context_page_description: The Qatar Armed Forces are the military forces of Qatar. Since 2015, Qatar has implemented mandatory military conscription with an average of 2000 graduates per year. As of 2010, Qatar's defence expenditures added up to a total of $1.913 billion, about 1.5% of the national GDP, according to the SIPRI. Qatar has recently signed defence pacts with the United States in 2002 and 2013 and with the United Kingdom, as well as with France earlier, in 1994. Qatar plays an active role in the collective defense efforts of the Gulf Cooperation Council; the other five members are Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, the UAE, and Oman. Qatar also hosts the largest American military base in the Middle East and in 2017 inaugurated a military attache office in Washington.
  SIPRI states that Qatar's plans to transform and significantly enlarge its armed forces have accelerated in 2014, and in 2010-14 Qatar was the 46th largest arms importer in the world. Orders in 2013 for 562 tanks and 75 self-propelled guns from Germany were followed in 2014 by a number of other contracts, including 34 combat helicopters and 13 AEW aircraft from the USA, and 6 tanker aircraft from Spain.
context_section_description: The Qatar Emiri Land Force is the largest branch of the Qatar Armed Forces.
  Initially outfitted with British weaponry, Qatar shifted much of its procurement to France during the 1980s in response to French efforts to develop closer relations. The tank battalion was equipped with French-built AMX-30 main battle tanks, before later being replaced by German Leopard 2A7's. Other armored vehicles include French AMX-10P APCs and the French VAB, adopted as the standard wheeled combat vehicle. The artillery unit has a few French 155mm self-propelled howitzers. The principal antitank weapons are French Milan and HOT wire-guided missiles.
  Qatar had also illicitly acquired a few Stinger shoulder-fired SAMs, possibly from Afghan rebel groups, at a time when the United States was trying to maintain tight controls on Stingers in the Middle East. When Qatar refused to turn over the missiles, the United States Senate in 1988 imposed a ban on the sale of all weapons to Qatar. The ban was repealed in late 1990 when Qatar satisfactorily accounted for its disposition of the Stingers.
  Qatari tank battalion fought in the Gulf war in 1991, their AMX-30s took part in the battle of Khafji. Qatari contingent, composed mostly of Pakistani recruits, acquitted itself well during the war.
  Qatar signed a contract with the German defence company Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) for the delivery of 24 artillery systems PzH 2000 and 62 LEOPARD 2 main battle tanks.
  The US DSCA announces that Qatar wants to join its neighbor the UAE, and field 2 medium-range THAAD batteries of its own.
  Their request is worth up to $6.5 billion, and includes up to 12 THAAD Launchers, 150 THAAD missiles, 2 THAAD Fire Control and Communications units, 2 AN/TPY-2 THAAD Radars, and 1 Early Warning Radar (EWR). The USA would also sell them the required trucks, generators, electrical power units, trailers, communications equipment, fire unit test & maintenance equipment, system integration and checkout, repair and return, training, and other support.
caption: Qatar Armed Forces in training.
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