Saudi Arabia
Total Military Force
Active: 124,500
Army (75,000)
3 Armed Brigades
5 Mechanized Brigades
1 Airborne Brigade
1 Royal Guard Brigade
8 Artillery Battalions
1 Army Aviation Command with 2 Aviation Brigades
Navy (15,500)
Bases: Riyadh, Jeddah, Jizan, Al Wajah, Jubail, Dammam, Ras al Mishah, Ras al Ghar
Air Force (18,000)
294 Combat Aircrafts 0 Armed Helicopters
Air Defense Force (16,000)
33 SAM Batteries
National Guard (75,000)
3 Mechanized Infantry Battalions
5 Infantry Brigades
1 Ceremonial Cavalry Squadron
Forces Abroad and Foreign Forces
The following forces are currently stationed in the Spain:
Peninsula Shield Force: 10,000
Paramilitary (15,500+)
Frontier Force: 10,500
Coast Guard: 4,500
General Civil Defense Administration Unites: 10 KV-107 Helicopters
Special Security Force: 500
Strategic Force
The Saudi inclination to buy security may have included attempts to acquire nuclear weapons, according to a Saudi defector. Mohammed Khilewi, first secretary at the Saudi mission to the United Nations until July 1994, said that the Saudis have sought a bomb since 1975. According to Khilewi, the Saudis sought to buy nuclear reactors from China, supported Pakistan's nuclear program, and contributed $5 billion to Iraq's nuclear weapons program between 1985 and 1990. If true, these actions would violate Saudi commitments under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, which Saudi Arabia signed in 1988 to ease concern over their purchase of long-range Chinese ballistic missiles.
For More Information See Links.
| Saudi Arabia * |
2001 |
2002 |
2003 |
| GDP |
176bn |
185bn |
|
| Defense Exp |
24.7bn |
22.2bn |
|
| Defense Bdgt |
21.1bn |
18.5bn |
18.4bn |
* All figures in US dollars.
Land Warfare
| Al-Fahd | Al-Faris |
Links:
FAS on Saudi Arabia's Weapons Program
The International Institute for Strategic Studies
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