Norwegian Armed Forces
The Norwegian Armed Forces (Norwegian: Forsvaret, lit. 'The Defence') is the military organization responsible for the defence of Norway. It consists of five branches, the Norwegian Army, the Royal Norwegian Navy, which includes the Coast Guard, the Royal Norwegian Air Force, the Home Guard, and Norwegian Cyber Defence Force as well as several joint departments.
Norwegian Armed Forces
"For alt vi har. Og alt vi er"
(For everything we have.
And everything we are.)
1628
1990
General Eirik Kristoffersen
Male: 17-44 (55 for officers) years of age for compulsory military service.
Female: 17 years of age for military service. Compulsory for females born in 2000 or later.
19-month service obligation.
31,980 males,
30,543 females
23,250 (2019)[1]
40,000 in the Norwegian Home Guard (2019)[1] 20,100 in the army reserve
384 (2019)[2]
US$7.231 billion (2020)[3]
2% (2020)[3]
The military force in peacetime is around 17,185 personnel including military and civilian staff, and around 70,000[4] in total with the current military personnel, conscripts and the Norwegian Home Guard in full mobilization.[1]
Among European NATO members, the military expenditure of US$7.2 billion is the highest per capita.
The formal commander-in-chief is King Harald V; however, the de facto supreme decision-making is made by the Cabinet, led by the Prime Minister. The Chief of Defence (a four-star general or admiral) is the professional head and leader of the armed forces, and is the principal military adviser to the Minister of Defence. The Chief of Defence and his staff is located at Akershus Fortress in Oslo, while the Norwegian Joint Headquarters, responsible for commanding operations, is located in Bodø. The main naval base is Haakonsvern in Bergen, the main army camps are in Bardu, Målselv and Rena, and the main air station is Ørland.
Military branches (in order of seniority):
Other main structures include:
2 mobilisation host country battalions (logistics for allied reinforcements) Norwegian ISAF soldiers in Afghanistan in 2009
