Volunteer military

A volunteer military or all-volunteer military is one which derives its manpower from volunteers rather than conscription or mandatory service. A country may offer attractive pay and benefits through military recruitment to attract volunteers. Many countries with volunteer militaries reserve the right to renew conscription in the event of an emergency.

The Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army. According to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, in 2010 the army had a strength of 1,129,900 active personnel and 960,000 reserve personnel. Formerly the pre-independence British Indian Army was also an all-volunteer force consisting at its peak of some 2,500,000 personnel.

In recent decades, the trend among numerous countries has been to move from conscription to all-volunteer military forces. One significant example is in France, which has historically been the first to introduce modern conscription and whose model was followed by many other countries in Europe and elsewhere around the world.

Volunteer military

Afghanistan  Albania  Antigua and Barbuda  Argentina  Australia  Bahamas  Bahrain  Bangladesh  Barbados  Belgium  Belize  Bhutan  Bosnia and Herzegovina  Botswana  Brunei  Bulgaria  Burkina Faso  Burundi  Cameroon  Canada  Chile  China (de facto)  Comoros  Congo  Croatia  Czech Republic  Democratic Republic of the Congo  Djibouti  Dominican Republic  Ethiopia  Fiji  France  Gabon  Gambia

Ghana  Germany  Guyana  Honduras  Hungary  India  Indonesia  Iraq  Ireland  Italy  Jamaica  Japan  Jordan  Kenya  Latvia  Lebanon  Lesotho  Liberia  Luxembourg  Macedonia  Madagascar  Malaysia  Malawi  Maldives  Malta  Mauritania  Morocco  Montenegro  Namibia    Nepal  Netherlands  New Zealand  Nicaragua  Nigeria

Oman  Pakistan  Papua New Guinea  Peru  Philippines  Poland  Portugal  Romania  Rwanda  Saint Kitts and Nevis  San Marino  Saudi Arabia  Serbia  Seychelles  Sierra Leone  Slovakia  Slovenia  Somalia  South Africa  Spain  Sri Lanka  Suriname  Sweden  Swaziland  Tanzania  Timor-Leste  Tonga  Trinidad and Tobago  Uganda  United Kingdom  United States  Uruguay  Zambia  Zimbabwe

See also

• Conscription
• Mercenaries
• Military service
• Military volunteer
• United States Volunteers
• Volunteer Force (Great Britain)

Further reading

Greenberg, Greg A., Robert A. Rosenheck, and Rani A. Desai. “Risk of Incarceration among Male Veterans and Nonveterans: Are Veterans of the All Volunteer Force at Greater Risk.” Armed Forces & Society, Apr 2007; vol. 33: pp. 337–350. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/33/3/337

Gilroy, Curtis L., Robert L. Phillips, and John D. Blair. “The All-Volunteer Army: Fifteen Years Later.” Armed Forces & Society, Apr 1990; vol. 16: pp. 329–350. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/16/3/329

Snyder, William P. “Officer Recruitment for the All-Volunteer Force: Trends and Prospects.” Armed Forces & Society, Apr 1984; vol. 10: pp. 401–425. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/10/3/401

Bachman, Jerald G. and John D. Blair. “’Citizen Force’ or ‘Career Force’?: Implications for Ideology in the All-Volunteer Army.” Armed Forces & Society, Oct 1975; vol. 2: pp. 81-96. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/2/1/81

McNown, Robert F., Bernard Udis, and Colin Ash. “Economic Analysis of the All-Volunteer Force.” Armed Forces & Society, Oct 1980; vol. 7: pp. 113–132. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/7/1/113

Janowitz, Morris and Charles C. Moskos, Jr. “Five Years of the All-Volunteer Force: 1973-1978. Armed Forces & Society, Jan 1979; vol. 5: pp. 171–218. http://afs.sagepub.com/cgi/reprint/5/2/171