Military Forces of Colombia

The Colombian Constitution includes two overlapping definitions of what could be defined as 'armed forces' in English: • The Public Force (): Includes the Military Forces proper and the National Police (Title VII, chapter VII, Art. 216) • The Military Forces (): Includes only the 3 major military service branches: Army, Navy and Aerospace Force (Title VII, chapter VII, Art. 217) This is a subtle yet important distinction, both in terms of emphasizing the civil nature of the National Police, but also adapting the national police to function as a paramilitary force which can perform military duties as a result of the Colombian Conflict. This has led to some of the most important police units adopting military training and conducting special operations alongside the Colombian Army, Aerospace Force, and Navy. Therefore, the functions of the Colombian Police in practical terms are similar to those of a gendarmerie, like the Spanish Civil Guard and the Carabineros de Chile, which maintain military ranks for all police personnel. ==Personnel==

The Colombian armed forces consist of: Military Forces: • Colombian Army • Colombian Navy – and attached services Marines and Colombian Coast Guard • Colombian Aerospace Force And, • National Police of Colombia Public Force strength as of April 2014. Dependencies • Military Medical Corps ('') – Medical and Nurse Corps • Indumil () – Military Industry Depot • Military Sports Federation () • Military Printing () • Military Museum () – History of the Armed Forces of Colombia • Superior War College () ==Funding==

In 2000, Colombia assigned 3.9% of its GDP to defense. By 2008 this figure had risen to 4.8%, ranking it 14th in the world. The armed forces number about 250,000 uniformed personnel: 145,000 military and 105,000 police. These figures do not include assistance personnel such as cooks, medics, mechanics, and so on. This makes the Colombian military one of the largest and most well-equipped in Latin America. Many Colombian military personnel have received military training assistance directly in Colombia and also in the United States. The United States has provided equipment and financing to the Colombian military and police through the military assistance program, foreign military sales, and the international narcotics control program, all currently united under the auspices of Plan Colombia. ==Rank Insignia==

: File:Colombian Air Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpía III (S-70A-41) Ramírez-1.jpg|Colombian Aerospace Force Sikorsky UH-60L Arpía III (S-70A-41) just after having launched several flares. File:Infantes de marina colombia.JPG|Colombian Marines File:Arc fragata caldas.jpg|Colombian Navy Frigate ARC Caldas File:Special Forces Colombia.jpg|Colombian Special Forces soldiers File:ARC Almirante Padilla.jpg|A vessel of the Colombian Navy ==See also==

• Includes 435 sub-officers and 3,125 agents • Includes 123,125 executive personnel and 23,562 Auxiliary conscript ==External links==