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Armed Forces of Bolivia

The Bolivian Armed Forces (Spanish: Fuerzas Armadas de Bolivia) are the military of Bolivia. The Armed Forces of Bolivia are responsible for the defence, both of external and internal, of Bolivia and they are constituted by Bolivian Army, the Bolivian Air Force and the Bolivian Navy. All these institutions depend on the Ministry of Defence of this country.

In addition to the Bolivian Army, the Bolivian Air Force and the Bolivian Navy, the Bolivian National Police, although dependent on the Ministry of Government in times of peace, is part of the reserves of the Armed Forces according to the Organic Law of the Armed Forces of this nation,[1] together with other reserve bodies such as the SAR-FAB emergency and rescue units.

Figures on the size and composition of the armed forces of Bolivia vary considerably, with rare official data available. It is estimated, however, that the three main forces (army, navy and air force) add up to a total of between 40,000[2] to 70,000[3][4][5] troops, while the Bolivian police would be around 40,000[6][7] troops. On 26 June 2024, General Zúñiga was arrested in a coup attempt.[8]

High Command of the Armed Forces of Bolivia

The roles and tenure of the High Command are described in the Organic Law of the Armed Forces (LOFA)[1] which states that the hierarchy is subordinate to and appointed by the President of Bolivia with the Minister of Defense acting as an intermediary between the President and the Armed Forces. Article 172 of the 2009 Constitution states that amongst the President's duties are "To designate and substitute the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and the Commanders of the Army, the Air Force and the Navy."[9]

The current positions, appointed by interim president Jeanine Áñez Chávez on 13 Nov 2019[10] are as follows:

Article 100 of the LOFA also states that these positions, and several others such as Chief of Police and Head of the Presidential, may be held "only once during the military career and for a time no greater than two years".[1][11] This results in a fairly high turnover in the Bolivian High Command with continued service being prohibited by law. The last changes in High Command, under the previous President Evo Morales, occurred on 24 Dec 2018,[12] 11 Dec 2017,[13] 29 Dec 2016,[14] 30 Dec 2015,[15] 18 Dec 2014,[16] 13 Dec 2013[11] and 3 Dec 2012.[17]

Attempts to increase the maximum length of service for members of the High Command (and other positions) were made, unsuccessfully, under the Morales administration who wished to increase it to between 3 and 5 years.[18]

Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces

Army

Coat of Arms of the Bolivian Army
See full article: Bolivian Army.

The Bolivian Army (Ejército de Bolivia, EB) is the land branch of the armed forces of Bolivia. Together with the Bolivia army and air force Bolivia, is responsible for protecting Bolivia of internal, external threats and ensure the independence of this country. The Bolivian Army has around 55,500 men. There are six military regions (regiones militares—RMs) in the army. The Army is organized into ten divisions. The Army maintains a small fleet of utility aircraft, primarily to support headquarters.

Combat units directly under the Army general command

Special forces command

The Special Forces command controls the following units:

Army aviation command

Army aviation company 291 (La Paz), army aviation company 292 (Santa Cruz)

Regional

The Bolivian Army has six military regions (regiones militares—RMs) covering the various Departments of Bolivia:

Army divisions

The army is organized into ten territorial divisions plus a mechanized division, each of which, with the exception of Viacha, occupy a region generally corresponding to the administrative departments, with some overlapping. These and their respective divisional headquarters and constituent units are:

RI: infantry regiment RC: cavalry regiment RA: artillery regiment Bat.Ing.: battalion engineer

Army organized has ten divisions controlling the following units:

Bolivian Snipers Dragunov SVD.

The Army maintains a small fleet of utility aircraft, primarily to support headquarters.

Equipment of the Army

Land equipment

SK105 Kürassier Tank of Bolivia.
7.5 cm FK 18 before a parade in Cochabamba.
EE-9 Cascavel of Bolivia.

Air equipment

Uniforms

A Bolivian Army soldier armed with a 7.62mm FN FAL rifle stands guard during Fuerzas Unidas Bolivia, a joint U.S. and Bolivian training exercise in April 1986.

Army officers, NCOs, and enlisted personnel generally wear gray or, for tropical areas, gray-green service uniforms. Army fatigue uniforms are olive green, and combat uniforms are of US woodland pattern camouflage. The standard headgear for enlisted personnel is the beret bearing the national colors of red, yellow and green. Paratroops (paracaidistas) were distinguished by black berets, and Special Forces by green berets.

Air Force

Coat of arms of the Bolivian Air Force
See full article: Bolivian Air Force.

The Bolivian air force (Fuerza Aérea Boliviana, FAB) is the air branch of the armed forces of Bolivia. The Bolivian Air Force has nine air bases, located at La Paz, Cochabamba, Santa Cruz, Puerto Suárez, Tarija, Villamontes, Cobija, Riberalta, and Roboré.

Major commands included the following:

K-8VB karakorum of the FAB

Units under direct control of the general command of the FAB

  • Tactical air group 62 (air base Riberalta): squadron 620
  • Air group 64: squadron (air base Cobija) 640
  • Transport air group 72 (air base Trinidad) : squadron 720

Navy

Coat of arms of the Bolivian Navy
See full article: Bolivian Naval Force.

The Bolivian Naval Force (Fuerza Naval Boliviana in Spanish), formerly Bolivian Navy (Armada Boliviana) is a naval force about 5,000 strong in 2008.[43] Although Bolivia has been landlocked since the War of the Pacific in 1879, Bolivia established a River and Lake Force (Fuerza Fluvial y Lacustre) in January 1963 under the Ministry of National Defense. It consisted of four boats supplied from the United States and 1,800 personnel recruited largely from the army. Bolivia's naval force was renamed the Bolivian Naval Force (Fuerza Naval Boliviana) in January 1966, but it also has been called the Bolivian Navy (Armada Boliviana). It became a separate branch of the armed forces in 1963. Bolivia has large rivers that are tributaries to the Amazon which are patrolled to prevent smuggling and drug trafficking. There is also a Bolivian Naval presence on Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, across which runs along the Peruvian frontier.

Naval Ensign of Bolivia

Landlocked Bolivia has not become reconciled with the loss of its coast to Chile, and the Navy exists to keep the hope of recovering its coast alive by cultivating a maritime consciousness.[43] The Bolivian Navy takes part in many parades and government functions, but none more so than the Día Del Mar (Day of the Sea) in which Bolivia, every year, asks for the coast territories lost to Chile during the War of the Pacific (fought between Peru and Bolivia against Chile) from 1879 to 1884. This is still a sore point for Bolivia, influencing many modern-day political actions and trade decisions.[44]

Districts

The Navy is organized into ten naval districts, with flotilla headquarters in Guaqui, Guayaramerín, Puerto Suárez, Riberalta, and San Pedro de Tiquina, and bases in Puerto Busch, Puerto Horquilla, Puerto Villarroel, Trinidad, and Rurrenabaque.

Naval vessels include several dozen boats, dozen or more of which are for riverine patrol, including the piranias, and riders, which are powerful river boats. In addition, Bolivia has several seagoing vessels, including the Santa Cruz de la Sierra (PR-51), and several flagged ships that sail with the permission of the "Capitanias Navales" Naval Registration Office. The Libertador Simón Bolívar, a ship acquired from Venezuela, use to navigate from its home port in Rosario, Argentina on the River Paraná. In 1993, the Navy was formally renamed the Naval Force (Fuerza Naval) and moved with the Bolivian Army under a single military authority.

Most of the officers are often educated in the Naval Academy where they graduate with a BS in Military and Naval Science, diploma accredited by the Military University and then they do other studies at the bachelor's degree and master's level. Argentina has their Naval Military Group in Bolivia advising at the highest level in naval strategy and tactics. Many Bolivian officers practice ocean sailing in Argentinean big naval ships. The Bolivian Navy has several Special Forces units to address both internal and external conflicts.

Marines of Bolivia marching in Cochabamba.

The Bolivian Naval Force covers the extensive river and lake Bolivian territory divided between the following functions Naval Districts, note that the names of these units are derived from the basin or region where they operate:

Marine corps

Bolivian Marines above inflatable boats.

The Marine component of the FNB originated with the creation of the Marine Battalion Almirante Grau in the early 1980s. This unit of 600 men is based on Tiquina naval base on Lake Titicaca. Later changes name to Marine Battalion Independence, based in Chua (Not to be confused with the Independence RI17 EB).At present this battalion maintains a similar number of troops including premilitares. Staff of this unit is part of Task Force Blue Devils or are stationed in various naval bases. There are currently seven infantry battalions which are distributed as follows:

Naval Military Police

This specialty is essentially similar to its counterpart in the Army, carrying out operations such as Important Persons Protection (IPP) Physical Security (SEF) or Patrol Facility (PAT), with additions such as signals or naval protocol. There Naval detachments of PM in all district headquarters or FNB Naval Area. But only have the following units at the Battalion:

Strength

Boats

The Bolivian Navy has a total of 173 vessels, mostly stationed on Lake Titicaca:

Naval aviation

Bolivia's navy operates one utility aircraft for the use of headquarters.

Conscription

Since 1904 military service has been compulsory for all fit males between the ages of eighteen and forty-nine. In practice, however, budgetary limitations strictly limited the number of eligible men conscripted, and those traditionally tended to be mostly Indians. Beginning in 1967, conscripts were legally held on active duty for up to two years, but funds seldom permitted even a full year's service. Noncommissioned officers (NCOs) and warrant officers, all of whom were volunteers, generally were drawn from mixed-blood cholos (those of Spanish and Indian descent). In the late 1980s, the service obligation was one year, and conscripts had to be at least nineteen years of age. The FF.AA. commander reported in early 1989 that the largest percentage of conscripts came from the middle class. One explanation for this change could have been the flocking of youths to the lucrative coca paste-making business. Military authorities in the Cochabamba area in particular began to experience growing difficulty in enlisting volunteers in the mid-1980s. Consequently, the military reportedly was resorting to pressganging eighteen-year-olds off the city streets to fill their annual quotas.

Training installations

Training installations include the Garras International Antinarcotics Training School (Escuela Garras del Valor) is a military training facility located in Bolivia, which trains military and law enforcement personnel from Bolivia and other Latin American countries[citation needed] in counternarcotics, intelligence, and counterinsurgency techniques.[45][46][47]

See also

References

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  2. ^ "CIA World Facts". Retrieved 2 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Bolivia-Military Spendings". Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  4. ^ "Bolivian Defence Spending Increases". Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  5. ^ Guillemí, Rubén (13 November 2019). "Evo y los militares, una relación con altibajos que tuvo un abrupto fin". La Nación (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 August 2020.
  6. ^ "Página Siete" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  7. ^ "El Deber" (in Spanish). 25 March 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  8. ^ López, Susana; Schmidt, Samantha (26 June 2024). "Bolivian soldiers storm plaza; former general accused of coup attempt". Washington Post. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
  9. ^ "Bolivia (Plurinational State of)'s Constitution of 2009" (PDF). constituteproject.org PDF generated: 27 Apr 2022, 10:44.
  10. ^ Corz, Carlos (13 November 2019). "Áñez posesiona al Alto Mando de las FFAA; les dice que el país los necesita para mantener la paz" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 13 November 2019.
  11. ^ a b "Nuevo mando militar será posesionado hoy". Los Tiempos. 14 December 2013.
  12. ^ Montero, Baldwin. "Gobierno y FFAA reafirman su cohesión en jura del nuevo Alto Mando Militar". la-razon.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 16 February 2020.
  13. ^ Valdés, Kattya (20 December 2018). "Presidente anuncia para el lunes 24 cambio del Alto Mando en las FFAA y la Policía". la-razon.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 31 January 2020.
  14. ^ Baldwin, Montero. "Nuevo Alto Mando de las FFAA asume compromiso de apoyo a la agenda 2025". la-razon.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 26 December 2019.
  15. ^ "Posesionan al nuevo Alto Mando de las FFAA; una mujer es jefa del Estado Mayor". Los Tiempos. 30 December 2015.
  16. ^ "Morales posesiona a nuevo alto mando militar de las FFAA". Los Tiempos. 18 December 2014.
  17. ^ "Morales posesiona a nuevo Alto Mando Militar". Los Tiempos. 3 December 2012.
  18. ^ Farfán, Williams. "FFAA define que Comandante en Jefe ocupe el cargo tres años". la-razon.com (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 20 December 2017.
  19. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 22888, 14 de agosto de 1991". lexivox.org/ (in Spanish). 22 October 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  20. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 23240, 20 de julio de 1992". lexivox.org/ (in Spanish). 22 October 2015. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
  21. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 23910, 15 de diciembre de 1994". lexivox.org/ (in Spanish). 4 June 2019. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  22. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 24401, 1 de noviembre de 1996". lexivox.org/ (in Spanish). 22 October 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  23. ^ "FFAA: Presidente relevará al Alto Mando Militar". noticiasfides.com (in Spanish). 22 November 2000. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  24. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 25992, 24 de noviembre de 2000". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 22 October 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  25. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 26757, 8 de agosto de 2002". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 27 June 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  26. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 27257, 24 de noviembre de 2003". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 22 October 2015. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  27. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 28202, 14 de junio de 2005". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 27 June 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  28. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 29880, 5 de enero de 2009". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 27 June 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  29. ^ "Presidente boliviano renueva cúpula militar". reuters.com (in Spanish). 5 January 2009. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  30. ^ "Bolivia: Decreto Presidencial Nº 408, 24 de enero de 2010". lexivox.org (in Spanish). 4 June 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
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  39. ^ "El general Williams Kaliman Romero asume como comandante en jefe de las FFAA". Los Tiempos. 24 December 2018.
  40. ^ "El Gral. Carlos Orellana es el nuevo comandante en jefe de las FFAA de Bolivia". fmbolivia.com.bo/ (in Spanish). 13 November 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  41. ^ a b "ORBAT del Ejercito de Bolivia". Archived from the original on 9 February 2009. Retrieved 28 August 2009. Alt URL
  42. ^ a b "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, Aviation Week & Space Technology, 15 January 2007.
  43. ^ a b Carroll, Rory; Schipani, Andres (27 August 2008). "Bolivia's landlocked sailors pine for the high seas". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  44. ^ Chantelle, Bacigalupo (22 March 2019). "Every year on 'Día Del Mar,' Bolivia celebrates the coastline they lost". PRI.org. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  45. ^ "United States promotes rule of law, transparency in the Americas". Embassy of the United States: Montevideo. 26 May 2005. Archived from the original on 17 March 2008. Retrieved 3 February 2010.
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External links