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This entry lists military forces deployed to other countries or territories abroad. The World Factbook defines deployed as a permanently stationed force or a temporary deployment of greater than six months. Deployments smaller than 100 personnel or paramilitaries, police, contractors, mercenaries, or proxy forces are not included. Numbers provided are estimates only and should be considered paper strengths, not necessarily the current number of troops on the ground. In addition, some estimates, such as those by the US military, are significantly influenced by deployment policies, contingencies, or world events and may change suddenly. Where available, the organization or mission that at least some of the forces are deployed under is listed. The following terms and abbreviations are used throughout the entry:
AMISOM - Africa Union (AU) Mission in Somalia; UN-supported, AU-operated peacekeeping mission
BATUS - British Army Training Unit Suffield, Canada
BATUK - British Army Training Unit, Kenya
CSTO - Collective Security Treaty Organization
ECOMIG - ECOWUS Mission in The Gambia; Africa Union-European Union peacekeeping, stabilization, and training mission in Gambia
EUTM - European Union Training Mission
EUFOR - European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (also known as Operation Althea)
EuroCorps - European multi-national corps headquartered in Strasbourg, France, consisting of troops from Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg, and Spain; Greece, Italy, Poland, Romania and Turkey are Associated Nations of EuroCorps
G5 Joint Force - G5 Sahel Cross-Border Joint Force comprised of troops from Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger
KFOR - the Kosovo Force; a NATO-led international peacekeeping force in Kosovo
MFO - Multinational Force & Observers Sinai, headquartered in Rome
MINUSCA - United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic
MINUSMA - United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali
MNJTF - Multinational Joint Task Force Against Boko Haram comprised of troops from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, Niger, and Nigeria with the mission of fighting Boko Haram in the Lake Chad Basin
MONUSCO - United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
NATO - North American Treaty Organization, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium
Operation Barkhane - French-led counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism mission in the Sahel alongside the G5 Joint Force; headquartered in N’Djamena, Chad and supported by Canada, Denmark, Estonia, the European Union, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the US
Operation Inherent Resolve - US-led coalition to counter the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria and provide assistance and training to Iraqi security forces
UNAFIL - United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon
UNAMID - African Union - United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur, Sudan
UNDOF - United Nations Disengagement Observer Force, Golan (Israel-Syria border)
UNFICYP - United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus
UNISFA - United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (Sudan-South Sudan border)
UNMISS - United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan
UNSOM - United Nations Assistance Mission in Somalia
Angola
in 2023, Angola agreed to send 500 troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for 12 months to oversee cantonment of a rebel group known as M23 (2023)Argentina
325 Cyprus (UNFICYP) (2024)Australia
note: the number of Australian military forces varies by mission; since the 1990s, Australia has deployed more than 30,000 personnel on nearly 100 UN peacekeeping and coalition military operations around the WorldAustria
170 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR stabilization force); 290 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 170 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Bangladesh
approximately 1,400 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,650 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO; plus about 200 police); 120 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 100 Mali (MINUSMA; plus about 150 police); 1,600 South Sudan (UNMISS); 500 Sudan (UNISFA) (2024)note: as of early 2024, Bangladesh had nearly 6,000 total military and police personnel deployed on UN missions
Belgium
100 Middle East; Belgium has more than 300 ground forces deployed in Eastern Europe, as well as air and naval assets, supporting NATO missions for the defense of NATO's eastern flank (numbers vary based on the mission) (2024)Bhutan
190 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Burundi
760 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); up to 3,000 in Somalia (ATMIS; note - foreign troop contingents under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024) (2024)note: Burundi deployed military troops to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in 2022 as part of an East African regional force; as of 2024, as many as 1,000 troops reportedly remained in the DRC
Cambodia
340 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 180 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Cameroon
750 (plus about 350 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)note: Cameroon has committed approximately 2,000-2,500 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations occur occasionally
Canada
the CAF has approximately 1,000 military personnel forward deployed for NATO air, land, and sea missions in the European theater, including a ground task force in Latvia; it also contributes smaller numbers of air, ground, and naval forces to a variety of other NATO and international missions (2024)note: in 2024, Canada announced plans to have a full 2,000-person brigade deployed to Latvia by 2026
Chad
Chad has committed approximately 1,000-1,500 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically (2024)China
400 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 1,030 South Sudan (UNMISS); 150 Sudan/South Sudan (UNISFA); up to 2,000 Djibouti (2024)Colombia
275 Egypt (MFO) (2024)Congo, Republic of the
has about 190 mostly police personnel deployed to the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Cote d'Ivoire
180 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Croatia
150 Kosovo (KFOR/NATO); 175 Lithuania (NATO; Croatia also has a few hundred personnel participating in several other EU, NATO, and UN missions (2024)Czechia
up to 130 Lithuania (NATO); 130 Slovakia (NATO) (2024)Denmark
approximately 800 Latvia (NATO); Denmark contributes small numbers of air, ground, and naval forces to a variety of other NATO and international missions (2024)Djibouti
approximately 950 Somalia (ATMIS; note - ATMIS troop contingents are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024); Djibouti has about 200 police deployed to the Central African Republic under MINUSCA (2024)Egypt
1,000 (plus nearly 200 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA); also has about 350 police deployed to the Democratic Republic of the Congo under MONUSCO (2024)Ethiopia
approximately 5-8,000 in Somalia (up to 4,000 for ATMIS; the remainder under a bilateral agreement with the Somali Government; note - foreign troop contingents in Somalia under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final departure in December 2024); 1,500 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2024)European Union
since 2003, the EU has launched more than 30 civilian and military crisis-management, advisory, and training missions in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, as well as counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia and a naval operation in the Mediterranean to disrupt human smuggling and trafficking networks and prevent the loss of life at sea (2024)note: in response to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU announced that it would develop a rapid deployment force consisting of up to 5,000 troops by 2025
Fiji
170 Egypt (MFO); 160 Iraq (UNAMI); 150 Golan Heights (UNDOF) (2024)Finland
165 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)France
France typically has up to 30,000 total air, ground, and naval forces deployed on permanent or temporary foreign missions; up to 10,000 are permanently deployed, including Djibouti (1,400); French Guyana (2,000); French Polynesia (900); French West Indies (1,000); Reunion Island (1,700); West Africa (1,600; Cote d'Ivoire, Gabon, Senegal), and the UAE (700)other non-permanent deployments include operations in Chad (1,000), NATO missions in Europe (2,000), the Middle East (850), and various EU (500) and UN (over 700, mostly in Lebanon under UNIFIL) missions (2024)
Germany
100 Estonia; up to 500 Iraq (NATO); Lebanon 170 (UNIFIL); up to 1,700 Lithuania (NATO); 100 Romania (NATO); 280 Slovakia (NATO) (2024)note: the German military has over 2,000 ground forces, plus air and naval contingents deployed on some 18 foreign missions
Ghana
875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 725 (plus about 275 police) South Sudan (UNMISS); 670 Sudan (UNISFA) (2024)note: since sending a contingent of troops to the Congo in 1960, the military has been a regular contributor to African- and UN-sponsored peacekeeping missions
Greece
approximately 1,000 Cyprus; 110 Kosovo (NATO); 120 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Guatemala
190 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2024)Hungary
150 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR stabilization force); 150 Iraq (NATO); 410 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); note - Hungary has small numbers of troops on several UN missions (2024)India
1,800 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 200 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 890 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 2,350 South Sudan (UNMISS); 590 Sudan (UNISFA) (2024)note: India has over 6,000 total military and police personnel deployed on UN missions
Indonesia
225 (plus about 140 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,025 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 1,225 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Iran
continues to maintain a military presence in Syria reportedly of a few thousand personnel, mostly of special operations and IRGC forces (2024)note: Iran has recruited, trained, and funded thousands of Syrian and foreign fighters to support the ASAD regime during the Syrian civil war
Ireland
130 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 325 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Italy
120 Djibouti; approximately 750 Bulgaria (NATO); approximately 650 Middle East (NATO, European Assistance Mission Iraq); 250 Hungary (NATO; up to 1,500 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 250 Latvia (NATO); 1,325 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 200 Libya; 350 Niger; 250 Romania (NATO); 150 Somalia (EUTM) (2024)note: Italy has about 11,500 total air, ground, and naval forces deployed on foreign missions
Japan
approximately 200 Djibouti (2024)Jordan
Jordan has about 200 police deployed to the MONUSCO mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2024)Kenya
400 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); more than 3,000 troops deployed in Somalia under ATMIS (note - ATMIS troop contingents are drawing down towards a final exit in December 2024) (2024)Korea, South
250 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 275 South Sudan (UNMISS); 170 United Arab Emirates; note - since 2009, South Korea has kept a naval flotilla with approximately 300 personnel in the waters off of the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (2024)Latvia
135 Kosovo (KFOR/NATO) (2024)Lithuania
note: contributes about 350-550 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operationMalawi
740 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO; note - as of early 2024, MONUSCO forces were drawing down towards a complete withdrawal by the end of 2024) (2024)Malaysia
830 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Mali
note: until announcing its withdrawal in May of 2022, Mali was part of a five-nation anti-jihadist task force known as the G5 Sahel Group, set up in 2014 with Burkina Faso, Chad, Mauritania, and Niger; Mali had committed 1,100 troops and 200 gendarmes to the forceMauritania
450 (plus about 325 police) Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Mongolia
875 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2024)note: since 2002, Mongolia has deployed more than 20,000 peacekeepers and observers to UN operations in more than a dozen countries
Morocco
770 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 930 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2024)Nepal
1240 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,150 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 400 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 225 Liberia (UNSMIL); 100 South Sudan/Sudan (UNISFA); 1,725 (plus about 220 police) South Sudan (UNMISS); note - Nepal has over 6,000 total personnel deployed on 15 UN missions (2024)Netherlands
350 Lithuania (NATO); 200 Romania (NATO) (2024)New Zealand
small numbers of NZ military personnel are deployed on a variety of international missions in Africa, Antarctica, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Middle East (2024)Niger
Niger has committed about 1,000 troops to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically (2024)Nigeria
190 Sudan/South Sudan (UNISFA) (2024)note: Nigeria has committed an Army combat brigade (approximately 3,000 troops) to the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF), a regional counter-terrorism force comprised of troops from Benin, Cameroon, Chad, and Niger; MNJTF conducts operations against Boko Haram and other terrorist groups operating in the general area of the Lake Chad Basin and along Nigeria's northeast border; national MNJTF troop contingents are deployed within their own country territories, although cross‐border operations are conducted periodically
Norway
up to 200 Lithuania (NATO); Norway also has deployed air and naval assets in support of other NATO operations such as the Iceland Air Policing and the Mine Counter Measures Group missions (2024)Pakistan
1,300 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 290 South Sudan (UNMISS); 590 Sudan (UNISFA) (2024)Peru
225 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Poland
210 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); up to 180 Latvia (NATO); 190 Lebanon (UNIFIL); approximately 230 Romania (NATO) (2024)note 1: Poland has obligated about 2,500 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operation
Portugal
the Portuguese Armed Forces have more than 1,100 military personnel deployed around the world engaged in missions supporting the EU, NATO, the UN, and partner nations; key deployments include 225 troops in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), approximately 220 in Lithuania (NATO), and approximately 150 in Romania (NATO); it also participates in NATO air policing and maritime patrolling operations (2024)Romania
up to 120 Poland (NATO); Romania also has small numbers of military personnel deployed on other international missions under the EU, NATO, and UN (2024)Russia
information varies and may not reflect troops transferred to support Russian military operations in Ukraine; approximately 3,000 Armenia; up to 5,000 Belarus; up to 10,000 Georgia; approximately 500 Kyrgyzstan; approximately 1,500 Moldova (Transnistria); estimated 2,000-5,000 Syria; approximately 3-5,000 Tajikistan (2023)note 1: in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine with an estimated 150,000 troops, some of which were staged out of Belarus; prior to the invasion, it maintained an estimated 30,000 troops in areas of Ukraine occupied since 2014; in 2023, the Russian Government claimed to have over 650,000 troops in occupied Ukraine
note 2: as of 2023, Russia was assessed to have thousands private military contractors conducting military and security operations in Africa and the Middle East, including in Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Libya, Mali, Niger, Sudan, and Syria
Rwanda
approximately 2,200 Central African Republic (MINUSCA; plus about 700 police); up to 3,000 Mozambique (deployed mid-2021 under a bilateral agreement to assist with combating an insurgency; includes both military and police forces); 2,600 (plus about 450 police) South Sudan (UNMISS) (2024)note: in December 2020, Rwanda sent an additional 1,200 to the Central African Republic under a bilateral agreement to support and train Central African Republic military forces, but their status as of 2024 was unclear)
Saudi Arabia
continues to maintain a military presence in Yemen; has also established and supports several local militias, including the National Shield Forces in Aden and the Amajid Brigade in Abyan (2023)Senegal
200 Central African Republic (MINUSCA; plus about 525 police); 800 (ECOWAS Military Intervention in The Gambia--ECOMIG); 500 (ECOWAS Stabilization Support Mission in Guinea-Bissau--EESMGB); 450 police Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2024)Serbia
180 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (2024)Singapore
maintains permanent training detachments of military personnel in Australia, France, and the US (2023)Slovakia
240 Cyprus (UNFICYP); up to 150 Latvia (NATO) (2024)Slovenia
100 Kosovo (NATO); 100 Slovakia (NATO) (2024)note: in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries, including Slovenia, have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe
South Africa
1,150 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) (2024)Spain
Spain has up to 3,000 military personnel deployed on 17 missions supporting the EU, NATO, and the UN on four continents, as well as naval missions in the Mediterranean and the seas off the Horn of Africa; its largest deployments are up to 700 troops in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and about 1,700 personnel in Eastern Europe supporting NATO missions in Latvia, Romania, and Slovakia (2024)Sri Lanka
110 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 125 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 240 Mali (MINUSMA) (2024)Sweden
the Swedish military has small numbers of personnel deployed on multiple EU-, NATO-, and UN-led missions (2024)Switzerland
175 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR) (2024)Tanzania
520 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 850 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO; note - the MONUSCO mission is in the process of drawing down forces); 125 Lebanon (UNIFIL); approximately 300 Mozambique (under bi-lateral agreement to assist with combatting an insurgency) (2024)Thailand
280 South Sudan (UNMISS) (2024)Tunisia
775 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2024)Turkey (Turkiye)
approximately 150 (Azerbaijan; monitoring cease-fire, clearing mines); 250 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR); approximately 30-35,000 Cyprus; 800 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR); 130 Lebanon (UNIFIL); estimated 500 Libya; up to 5,000 Qatar; approximately 200 Somalia (training mission) (2023)note: Turkey maintains significant military forces in both Iraq and Syria; size estimates vary as some forces are long-term deployments while others are deployed for specific operations; between 2016 and 2020, Turkey conducted four significant military ground campaigns in northern Syria with the stated purpose of securing its southern border; Turkey also has deployed troops into northern Iraq on numerous occasions to combat the Kurdistan Worker's Party (PKK), including large operations involving thousands of troops in 2007, 2011, and 2018, and smaller-scale operations in 2021 and 2022; Turkey has also conducted numerous air strikes in both Iraq and Syria
Uganda
as many as 6,000 Somalia (625 for UNSOM; the remainder under ATMIS; note - foreign troop contingents in Somalia under ATMIS are drawing down towards a final withdrawal in December 2024) (2024)Ukraine
note: prior to the Russian invasion in 2022, Ukraine had committed about 500 troops to the Lithuania, Poland, and Ukraine joint military brigade (LITPOLUKRBRIG), which was established in 2014; the brigade is headquartered in Poland and is comprised of an international staff, three battalions, and specialized units; units affiliated with the multinational brigade remain within the structures of the armed forces of their respective countries until the brigade is activated for participation in an international operationUnited Arab Emirates
continues to maintain a small force in Yemen; also maintains some troops at military bases in Eritrea and Somalia (Somaliland) (2023)note: in 2015, UAE intervened militarily in Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition in support of the Republic of Yemen Government with an estimated 3,500 troops, as well as supporting air and naval forces; UAE withdrew its main military force from Yemen in 2019, but has retained a small military presence while working with proxies in southern Yemen, most notably the Southern Transitional Council (STC)
United Kingdom
the British military has more than 8,000 personnel on permanent or long-term rotational deployments around the globe in support of NATO, UN, or other commitments and agreements; key deployments include approximately 1,000 in Brunei, approximately 2,500 in Cyprus (includes 250 for UNFICYP), approximately 1,000 in Estonia (NATO), over 1,000 in the Falkland Islands, almost 600 in Gibraltar, and more than 1,000 in the Middle East; its air and naval forces conduct missions on a global basis; the British military also participates in large scale NATO exercises, including providing some 16,000 personnel for the 6-month 2024 Steadfast Defender exercise (2024)United States
the US has more than 200,000 military troops deployed overseas on permanent or long-term rotational (typically 3-9 months) deployments; key deployments include approximately 5,000 in Africa, approximately 100,000 in Europe, approximately 10-15,000 in Southwest Asia, and more than 80,000 in East Asia (2024)note: US military rotational policies affect deployment sizes, and the numbers given may fluctuate; the US deploys ground and air units to select countries for 6-12 month rotational assignments on a continuous basis; in South Korea, for example, the US regularly rotates combat brigades (approximately 3,000 personnel) for 9 months at a time; contingencies also affect US troop deployments; in 2019-2020, the US deployed more than 15,000 additional military personnel to the Middle East for an extended period of time and has sent more than 30,000 reinforcements to Europe in response to the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022; in addition, some overseas US naval bases, such as the headquarters of US Naval Forces Central Command (USNAVCENT) in Manama, Bahrain, are frequented by the crews of US ships on 6-9 month deployments; a US carrier strike group with an air wing and supporting ships typically includes over 6,000 personnel