page_title: Armed Forces of Belarus
section_title: Manpower
hierarchical_section_title: Armed Forces of Belarus / Manpower
caption_attribution_description: English: Командующий войсками ЗВО проверил готовность военнослужащих к параду в Минске, посвящённому Дню независимости Белоруссии
context_page_description: The Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus consist of the Ground Forces and the Air and Air Defence Forces, all under the command of the Republic of Belarus Ministry of Defence. Being a landlocked country, Belarus has no navy.
  In 2017 the IISS estimated that personnel in the armed forces numbered 48,000. Most soldiers are conscripts serving for a period of 18 months, although there is an alternative service option.
  Belarus conducted military reforms in the 2000s which have reshaped its armed forces as a relatively effective force for a small state in somewhat difficult economic conditions.
context_section_description: The Government Directive of 20 March 1992 ‘On the Establishment of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus’ founded the Belarusian army. The Soviet troops of the BMD were smoothly converted into Belarusian military units. Yet one of the first tasks of the Belarusian government was a reduction in its numbers. 240,000 soldiers and officers were serving in the Belarusian Military District. By early 2013 the numbers of military personnel had been scaled down nearly fourfold since 1991. In February 2014, Belorusskaya Voyennaya Gazeta, the official publication of the
  Ministry of Defense revealed that the Belarusian Armed Forces contains about 59,500 personnel, including 46,000 soldiers and 13,000 civilians.
caption: Belarusian jets during a flypast in Minsk, July 2019.
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