Iceland - Military

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Iceland is located Northern Europe, island between the Greenland Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, northwest of the UK. The climate is temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windy winters; damp, cool summers. The terrain is mostly plateau interspersed with mountain peaks, icefields; coast deeply indented by bays and fiords.

Military branches

This entry lists the service branches subordinate to defense ministries or the equivalent (typically ground, naval, air, and marine forces).
Military branches : no regular military forces; Icelandic National Police (2008)

Manpower available for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and assumes that every individual is fit to serve.
Manpower available for military service - males age 16-49 : 74,896 (2008 est.)

Manpower fit for military service

This entry gives the number of males and females falling in the military age range for a country (defined as being ages 16-49) and who are not otherwise disqualified for health reasons; accounts for the health situation in the country and provides a more realistic estimate of the actual number fit to serve.
Manpower fit for military service - males age 16-49 : 62,342 (2008 est.)

Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually

This entry gives the number of males and females entering the military manpower pool (i.e., reaching age 16) in any given year and is a measure of the availability of military-age young adults.
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - male : 2,393
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually - female : 2,317 (2008 est.)

Military expenditures

This entry gives spending on defense programs for the most recent year available as a percent of gross domestic product (GDP); the GDP is calculated on an exchange rate basis, i.e., not in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP).
Military expenditures : 0% of GDP (2005 est.)

Military - note

This entry includes miscellaneous military information of significance not included elsewhere.
Military - note : Iceland has no standing military force; under a 1951 bilateral agreement - still valid - its defense was provided by the US-manned Icelandic Defense Force (IDF) headquartered at Keflavik; however, all US military forces in Iceland were withdrawn as of October 2006; although wartime defense of Iceland remains a NATO commitment, in April 2007, Iceland and Norway signed a bilateral agreement providing for Norwegian aerial surveillance and defense of Icelandic airspace (2008)

More Information about the country