Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Army (includes Special Operations Forces, Border Guards, Royal Guard), Royal Jordanian Air Force, Royal Jordanian Coast Guard; Ministry of Interior: General Directorate of Gendarmerie Forces, Public Security Directorate (2020)
Ministry of Defense: Iraqi Army, Army Aviation Command, Iraqi Navy, Iraqi Air Force, Iraqi Air Defense Command, Special Forces Command
National-Level Security Forces: Iraqi Counterterrorism Service (CTS; a Special Forces Division aka the "Golden Division"), Prime Minister's Special Forces Division, Presidential Brigades
Ministry of Interior: Federal Police Forces Command, Border Guard Forces Command, Federal Intelligence and Investigations Agency, Emergency Response Division, Facilities Protection Directorate, and Energy Police Directorate
Popular Mobilization Commission and Affiliated Forces (PMF); Ministry of Pershmerga (Kurdistan Regional Government) (2020)
note: the PMF is a collection of approximately 50 paramilitary militias of different sizes and with varying political interests
Military service age and obligation
17 years of age for voluntary male military service (women can volunteer to serve in noncombat military positions in the Royal Jordanian Arab Army Women's Corps and RJAF); initial service term 2 years, with option to reenlist for 18 years; conscription abolished in 1991; however, in 2020, Jordan announced the reinstatement of compulsory military service for jobless men aged between 25 and 29 with 12 months of service, made up of three months of military training and nine months of professional and technical training; in 2019, announced a voluntary 4-month National Military Service program for men and women aged between 18-25 years who have been unemployed for at least six months; service would include one month for military training with the remaining three months dedicated to vocational training in the sectors of construction and tourism (2020)
18-40 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (2019)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
5% of GDP (2020 est.)
4.7% of GDP (2019)
4.7% of GDP (2018)
4.8% of GDP (2017)
4.6% of GDP (2016)
4% of GDP (2020 est.)
3.9% of GDP (2019)
2.9% of GDP (2018)
3.9% of GDP (2017)
3.5% of GDP (2016)
Military and security service personnel strengths
the Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) have approximately 90,000 active personnel (77,000 Army; 500 Navy; 12,500 Air Force); est. 15,000 Gendarmerie Forces (2021)
information varies; approximately 200,000 personnel under the Ministry of Defense (190,000 Army/Aviation Command/Special Forces; 5,000 Navy; 5,000 Air/Air Defense Forces); approximately 25,000 National-Level Security Forces (10,000 Iraqi Counterterrorism Service; 10,000 Presidential Brigades; 5,000 Prime Minister's Special Forces Division); est. 100-160,000 Popular Mobilization Forces; est. 150,000-200,000 Peshmerga Forces (2020-21)
Military equipment inventories and acquisitions
the JAF inventory is comprised of a wide mix of imported weapons, mostly second-hand equipment from Europe, the Gulf States, and the US; since 2010, the Netherlands and the US are the leading suppliers of military hardware to Jordan (2020)
the Iraqi military inventory is comprised of Russian and Soviet-era equipment combined with newer European- and US-sourced platforms; since 2010, Russia and the US are the leading suppliers of military hardware to Iraq (2020)
