Introduction
How is the Military in United Arab Emirates and how does it work to maintain Sucity and fight terrorism? In terms of Military and security forces, we have the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces: Land Forces (Army), Navy, Air Force, Presidential Guard (includes special operations forces), National Guard (includes Coast Guard) (2025).
In United Arab Emirates, the UAE Armed Forces (UAEAF) are responsible for defending the state, its resources, and territory, preserving internal security, and supporting the UAE's foreign policy objectives; key security concerns include regional stability and cross-border threats, such as piracy and terrorism; in recent years, the UAE has undertaken a military modernization program to go along with an assertive security policy which has included military involvements in Afghanistan, Libya, Somalia, Syria, and Yemen

the UAE has close security ties to France and the US; it hosts a multi-service French military base, which includes the French naval command for the Indian Ocean (ALINDIEN); the UAE has a defense cooperation agreement with the US and hosts thousands of US military troops, mostly air and naval personnel; it also has defense ties with a number of other countries, including Australia, China, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Malaysia, South Korea, and the UK, as well as NATO and fellow members of the Gulf Cooperation Council, particularly Saudi Arabia

the UAEAF traces its origins to the establishment of the Trucial Oman Scouts in 1951, a joint UK-Abu Dhabi organization modeled after Jordan’s Arab Legion, which became the Abu Dhabi Defense Force in 1965; the modern UAEAF were formed in 1976 (2025)
Security and military information of United Arab Emirates
Military and security service personnel strengths approximately 65,000 active Armed Forces (45,000 Land Forces; 3,000 Navy; 5,000 Air Force; 12,000 Presidential Guard) (2025)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions the military's inventory is comprised of a wide variety of mostly modern imported weapons and equipment, and a small, but expanding amount of domestically-produced items; major foreign suppliers have included China, France, Italy, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, and the US; the UAE has a  growing domestic defense industry which produces or co-produces such items as armored vehicles, naval vessels, precision munitions, and unmanned aerial vehicles/drones (2024)
Military service age and obligation 18-30 years of age for compulsory national service for men (compulsory service initiated in 2014); 18-40 for voluntary service; 36-month service obligation for men without a secondary education and 11 months for secondary school graduates; women may volunteer for national service (11-month service obligation regardless of education) (2025). note 1: compulsory service may be completed in the uniformed military, the Ministry of Interior, or other security institutions designated by the military leadership

note 2: the UAE military employs a considerable number of foreign personnel on contracted service
Military deployments maintains a few hundred troops in Somalia and Yemen (2025).
Military expenditures
Military Expenditures 2024 4% of GDP (2024 est.)
Military Expenditures 2023 4.3% of GDP (2023 est.)
Military Expenditures 2022 4% of GDP (2022 est.)
Military Expenditures 2021 4.5% of GDP (2021 est.)
Military Expenditures 2020 6.1% of GDP (2020 est.)
All Important Facts about United Arab Emirates

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United Arab Emirates is found in Western Asia