Women in the military
Women have been serving in the military since the inception of organized warfare, in both combat and non-combat roles. Their inclusion in combat missions has increased in recent decades, often serving as pilots, mechanics, and infantry officers.
"Female soldiers" redirects here. For female child soldiers, see girl soldiers.
Since 1914,[1] women have been conscripted in greater numbers, filling a greater variety of roles in Western militaries. In the 1970s, most Western armies began allowing women to serve on active duty in all military branches.[2] In 2006, eight countries (China, Eritrea, Israel, Libya, Malaysia, North Korea, Peru, and Taiwan) conscripted women into military service.[3] In 2013, Norway became the first NATO country to draft women, as well as the first country in the world to conscript women on the same formal terms as men. Sweden followed in 2017, as did the Netherlands in 2018 (although in the Netherlands there is no active peacetime conscription).[4][5] Denmark announced in 2024, that women will be conscripted, starting in 2026.[6]
As of 2022, only three countries conscripted women and men on the same formal conditions: Norway, Sweden,[5] and the Netherlands.[7][8] Denmark has plans to start conscripting women in 2026.[6] A few other countries have laws allowing for the conscription of women into their armed forces, though with some differences such as service exemptions, length of service, and more.[9]
Today women can serve in every position in the French military, including submarines and combat infantry. make up around 15% of all service personnel in the combined branches of the French military. They are 11% of the Army forces, 16% for the Navy, 28% of the Air Force and 58% of the Medical Corps. So womens are as important as men in either medics or combat.
