The armed forces of Argentina are controlled by the Commander-in-Chief (the President) and a civilian Minister of Defense. The Interior Ministry controls two paramilitary forces, the Gendarmería (Gendarmes, mostly land forces used to guard the frontiers and strategic places) and the Prefectura Naval (Coast Guard to guarding rivers and the territorial sea). President is a title held by many leaders of organizations, companies, universities, and countries. ... The Gendarmería Nacional Argentina (Argentine National Gendarmerie; GNA) is an Argentine paramilitary service (or gendarmerie). ... A gendarmerie (French) is a military body charged with general police duties. ... Prefectura Nacional Argentina is an Argentine military body created to patrol and police the countrys rivers and territorial sea. ...

Structure

The military is under the authority of the Defense Ministry (Ministro de Defensa).

The Military is comprised of three main branches:

• The Argentine Army (Ejército Argentino)
• The Argentine Navy (Armada de la República Argentina), including Naval Aviation and Marines
• The Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Argentina)

Additionally under the Defense Ministry is CITEFA (Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de las Fuerzas Armadas), or Armed Forces Scientific and Technical Research Institute. The Argentine Army (Spanish Ejército Argentino) is the land armed force branch of the Argentine military and the senior military service of the country. ... Argentine Navy Jack The Armada de la República Argentina (ARA) is the navy of Argentina. ... The Argentine Air Force (Fuerza Aérea Argentina, FAA) is the national air force of Argentina. ...

History

Argentina had traditionally difficult relations with some of its neighbors, especially Chile (which almost caused a war between the two countries in 1978, on the basis of disputed islands in the Atlantic-Pacific line). Under presidents Carlos Menem and Fernando de la Rúa, international relations improved, and Argentine officials now publicly deny seeing a potential threat from any neighboring country. The multiple border disputes with Chile have been resolved. Carlos Saúl Menem (born July 2, 1930) was President of Argentina from July 8, 1989 to December 10, 1999 for the Justicialist Party (Peronist). ... Fernando de la Rúa Fernando de la Rúa Fernando de la Rúa Bruno (born September 15, 1937) is an Argentine politician. ...

While Mercosur is only an economic entity so far, the strengthening of confidence among the member countries has been beneficial to the peace in the region, exercising a useful role in supporting democracy. The Mercosur served, for example, to discourage the Paraguayan military during an attempted coup in early 2000. Flag of Mercosur MERCOSUR Mercosur or Mercosul (Spanish: Mercado Común del Sur, Portuguese: Mercado Comum do Sul, English: Southern Common Market) is a trading zone between Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, founded in 1991 by the Treaty of Asunción, which was later amended and updated by the 1995...

Under president Néstor Kirchner, relations with the United States have become of a different nature. The US military has requested a guarantee of full immunity for their soldiers in case they commit a crime while in joint maneuvers in Argentine territory, and Argentina has denied this guarantee. Argentina has also distanced itself somewhat from the US in matters such as the Iraq invasion, it has abstained twice on the UN vote to condemn Cuba on the issue of human rights violations, and president Kirchner has stood in favor of the controversial Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez. â–¶ (help· info) (born 25 February 1950) is the current President of Argentina. ... Iraq war may refer to one of the following: The 2003 invasion of Iraq and the subsequent occupation The Gulf War (1990–1991), also known as the Persian Gulf War or the First Gulf War The Iran-Iraq War (1980–1988) The Anglo-Iraqi War (1941) The Iraq War, a... Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (born July 28, 1954) is the 53rd and current President of Venezuela. ...

Argentina has not sent troops to wars abroad in recent times, but has remained involved in UN peacekeeping efforts in multiple locations like Cyprus, Bosnia and Haiti.

The Argentine military were considerably more influential in former times. Throughout the 20th century, democratic governments were more often than not interrupted by military coups d'etat (see History of Argentina). The last military dictatorship lasted from 1976 to 1983 and was termed "National Reorganization Process" by its leaders (see Proceso de Reorganización Nacional). For details on the crimes committed by the Proceso's military juntas, see Dirty War. A coup détat, or simply a coup, is the sudden overthrow of a government, usually done by a small group that just replaces the top power figures. ... This article is about the history of Argentina. ... Proceso de Reorganización Nacional (Spanish, National Reorganization Process, often simply Proceso) was the name used by its leaders for the right-wing military dictatorship that ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983 (which in Argentina it simply known as the military junta, even though several of them existed throughout its... The term dirty war generally refers to a program of state terrorism in response to perceived left-wing subversion that is claimed to threaten a countrys stability. ...

Within Democracy, the argentine military had been reduced both in number and budget but became more professional by making the military service volunteer. The British embargo due the Falklands/Malvinas War was officially eliminated since the 90s and was granted Major Non-NATO ally status by US President Bill Clinton but perhaps the most relevant fact of the last decade is the close cooperation and friendship with neighboring Brazil and Chile The Falklands War (Spanish: Guerra de las Malvinas), was a war between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Falkland Islands (also known in Spanish as the Islas Malvinas) and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, between March and June of 1982. ... The United States of America has vast economic, political and military influence on a global scale, which makes its foreign policy a subject of great interest and discussion around the world. ... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe, III on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ...

The Argentine armed forces maintain close defense cooperation and military-supply relationships with the United States. Other countries also have military relationships with the Argentine forces, principally Israel, Germany, France, Spain and Italy.

References

This article incorporates information from The World Factbook, which is in the public domain. World Factbook 2005 cover The World Factbook is an annual publication by the Central Intelligence Agency of the United States with basic almanac-style information about the various countries of the world. ...