View source for Royal Moroccan Armed Forces

{{short description|Combined military forces of Morocco}}
{{Infobox national military
| name = Royal Moroccan Armed Forces
| native_name = {{noitalic|{{Script|Arab|القوات المسلحة الملكية المغربية}}}}
| image = Flag of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces.svg
| image_size = 185
| alt = 
| caption = 
| image2 = 
| alt2 = 
| caption2 = 
| motto = "الله، الوطن، الملك"<br />"God, Homeland, King"
| founded = {{Start date and years ago|df=yes|1088}}
| current_form = {{Start date and years ago|df=yes|1666}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.maghreb-observateur.qc.ca/archives98/juillet99/la_garde_royale_marocaine.html|title=La Garde royale marocaine|website=www.maghreb-observateur.qc.ca}}</ref>
| disbanded = 
| branches = {{plainlist|
* {{army|Morocco|size=23px}}
* {{navy|Morocco|size=23px}}
* {{air force|Morocco|size=23px}}
* {{flagicon image|Alaouite dynasty Flag.svg|size=23px}} [[Moroccan Royal Guard]]
* {{flagicon image|Flag of the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie.svg|size=23px}} [[Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie]]
}}
| headquarters = [[Rabat]]
| flying_hours = 
| website = {{URL|tajnid.ma}} <small>(recruitment)</small><br />
{{URL|revue.far.ma}} <small>(official magazine)</small>
<!-- Leadership -->| commander-in-chief = [[Mohammed VI of Morocco|Mohammed VI]]
| commander-in-chief_title = [[King of Morocco|Supreme Commander]]
| chief minister = 
| chief minister_title = 
| minister = [[Abdellatif Loudiyi]]
| minister_title = Minister of Defense
| commander = Major-General [[Mohammed Berrid]]
| commander_title = [[Inspector general (Morocco)|Inspector General]]
| age = 18
| conscription = Yes<ref>{{cite news|url=http://geographical.co.uk/people/cultures/item/2949-military-conscription|title=Reintroduction of military conscription in Morocco|last=Fitch|first=Chris|publisher=[[Geographical (magazine)|Geographical]]|date=26 October 2018|access-date=22 November 2018}}</ref>
| manpower_data = 
| manpower_age = 
| available = 
| available_f = 
| fit = 
| fit_f = 
| reaching = 
| reaching_f = 
| active = 400,000<ref name="Balance359">{{cite book| title=The Military Balance 2022| author=[[International Institute for Strategic Studies]]| date=14 February 2022| publisher=[[Routledge]]| location=[[London]]| page= 359| isbn=978-1032279008}}</ref>
| ranked = 
| reserve = 250,000<ref name="Balance359"/>
| deployed = <!-- Financial -->
| amount = 119.766 billion MAD
$11.796 billion (2023)<ref>Dahir n° 1-22-75 of 18 Jumada I 1444 (December 13, 2022) promulgating the finance law No. 50-22 for the 2023 budget year. </ref>
| percent_GDP = 8.5% (2023)<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/502797/gross-domestic-product-gdp-in-morocco/ | title=Morocco - gross domestic product (GDP) 1988-2028 }}</ref>
<!-- Industrial -->| domestic_suppliers = 
| foreign_suppliers = {{USA}}<br />{{UK}}<br />{{ESP}}<br />{{FRA}}<br />{{ITA}}<br />{{China}}<br/>{{RUS}}<br/>'''Other suppliers: '''<br/>{{flag|Switzerland}}<br/>{{flag|Singapore}}<br/>{{EU}}<br/>{{flag|Egypt}}<br/>{{UKR}}<br/>{{ISR}}<br/>{{IND}}<br/>{{TUR}}<br/>{{flag|Brazil}}<br/>{{AUS}}<br/>{{CAN}}
| imports = 
| exports = <!-- Related articles -->
| history = '''[[Military history of Morocco]]'''<br />[[Ifni War]]<br />[[Rif revolt]]<br />[[Sand War]]<br />[[Six-Day War]]<br />[[Yom Kippur War|October War]]<br />[[Western Sahara War]]<br />[[Gulf War]]<br />[[Insurgency in the Maghreb (2002–present)|Insurgency in the Maghreb]]<br />[[Saudi Arabian–led intervention in Yemen|Intervention in Yemen]]<br />[[Western Saharan clashes (2020–present)|Western Saharan clashes]]
| ranks = [[Military ranks of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces|Military ranks of Morocco]]
}}

The '''Royal Moroccan Armed Forces''' ({{Langx|ar|القوات المسلحة الملكية المغربية|translit=Al-Quwwat al-Musallaha al-Malakiyah al-Maghribiyah}}) are the [[military forces]] of [[Morocco]]. They consist of the [[Royal Moroccan Army|Army]], the [[Royal Moroccan Navy|Navy]], the [[Royal Moroccan Air Force|Air Force]], the [[Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie|Royal Gendarmerie]], and the [[Moroccan Royal Guard|Royal Guard]].

The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces have experience in [[counter-insurgency]], [[desert warfare]] and combined air-land operations. Further experience has come from participating in [[peace-keeping]] operations.<ref name="IISS 2013, pp. 394">[[#IISS2013|IISS 2013]], pp. 394</ref>

==History==
{{Main|Military history of Morocco}}
The oldest "Moroccan" military forces are those of the Mauri Berber Kingdoms from around 225 BCE.<ref name="ReferenceA">[[Livy]] ''[[Ab Urbe Condita Libri (Livy)|Ab Urbe Condita Libri]]'' 29.30</ref> The Moroccan army has existed continuously since 1088 during the rising of [[Almoravid dynasty|Almoravid Empire]] in the 11th century. During the protectorates period (1912–1955),<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/morocco/|title=Africa :: Morocco — The World Factbook - Central Intelligence Agency|website=www.cia.gov|date=14 November 2022 }}</ref> large numbers of Moroccans were recruited for service in the [[Goumiers]] and [[Regular army|Regulars]] regiments of the Moroccan [[Army(Morocco)|Army of Morocco]] ([[French language|French]]: ''Armée de Maroc''). Many served during [[World War I]]. During World War II more than 500,000 Moroccan troops (including [[goumier]] auxiliaries) served with the [[Allies of World War II|Allied forces]] in North Africa, Italy, France, Germany and Austria. The two world conflicts saw Moroccan units earning the nickname of "Todesschwalben" (death swallows) by German soldiers as they showed particular toughness on the battlefield. After the end of [[World War II]], Moroccan troops formed part of the [[French Far East Expeditionary Corps]] engaged in the [[First Indochina War]] from 1946 to 1954.

The [[Spanish Army]] also made extensive use of Moroccan troops recruited in the [[Spanish Morocco|Spanish Protectorate]], during both the [[Rif War (1920)|Rif War]] of 1921–26 and the [[Spanish Civil War]] of 1936–39. Moroccan ''[[Regulares]]'', together with the [[Spanish Legion]], made up Spain's elite [[Spanish Army of Africa]]. A para-military [[gendarmerie]], known as the "Mehal-la Jalifianas" and modelled on the French goumieres, was employed within the Spanish Zone.

The Royal Armed Forces were created on 14 May 1956, after the Franco-spanish Protectorate was dissolved in 1955.<ref name="art7">{{cite web|title=57e anniversaire de la création des FAR|url=http://www.lematin.ma/express/57e-anniversaire-de-la-creation-des-FAR-_La-place-d-armes-de-Rabat-Sale-organise-un-diner-/182287.html|publication-date=2014-05-16|access-date=2014-10-03|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006081416/http://www.lematin.ma/express/57e-anniversaire-de-la-creation-des-FAR-_La-place-d-armes-de-Rabat-Sale-organise-un-diner-/182287.html|archive-date=2014-10-06}}</ref> 140,000 Moroccan personnel from the French protectoral army and 90,000 from the Spanish protectoral army Forces transferred into the newly formed armed forces, this number was augmented by approximately 15,000 former guerrillas from the "Army of Liberation", About 2,000 French and Spanish officers and NCOs remained in Morocco on short term contracts until the training programs at the military academies of St-Cyr, Toledo and [[Meknes Royal Military Academy|Dar al Bayda]] produced sufficient numbers of Moroccan commissioned officers. Four years later, the [[Royal Moroccan Navy]] was established in 1960.

The Moroccan military's first engagement as an independent country in the 20th century was the [[Ifni War]], followed by the [[Rif revolt]], and then [[Sand War|the border war of 1963 with Algeria]],<ref name=time>[https://web.archive.org/web/20071112110043/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,893782,00.html Ifni & After], ''[[Time Magazine]]'', December 16, 1957</ref><ref name="onwar.com">[http://www.onwar.com/aced/data/alpha/algmor1963.htm ''Algerian-Moroccan War 1963''] – onwar.com</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=C. Kohn |first=George |title=Dictionary of Wars |pages=10}}</ref> In the early 1960s, Moroccan troops were sent to the Congo as part of the first multifunctional UN peacekeeping operation [[ONUC]], The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces fought on the Golan front during the [[Yom Kippur War]] of 1973 (mostly in the battle for [[Quneitra]]) and intervened decisively in the 1977 conflict known as [[Shaba I]] to save Zaire's regime.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/5829/CIA-RDP79T00975A030700010040-6.pdf|title=National Intelligence Daily (Cable) : 5 June 1978}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.foia.cia.gov/sites/default/files/document_conversions/5829/CIA-RDP79T00975A030900010092-7.pdf|title=National Intelligence Daily (Cable), 27 novembre 1978}}</ref> After Shaba II, Morocco was part of the Inter-African Force deployed on the Zaire border, contributing about 1,500 troops.<ref>{{cite book |title=Peacekeeping In Africa: Capabilities And Culpabilities  |last=Berman, Eric G. |author2=Sams, Katie E. |year=2000 |publisher=[[United Nations Institute for Disarmament Research]] |location=Geneva |isbn=92-9045-133-5 |pages=219–220}}</ref> The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces also took a symbolic part in the [[Gulf War]] among other Arab armies.

Between 1975 and 1991, the Moroccan Armed Forces fought a [[Western Sahara War|16-year war]] against the [[POLISARIO]], an [[Algeria]]n backed rebel national [[liberation movement]] seeking the independence of [[Western Sahara]] from Morocco.<ref name="The Sahara War 1975-1991">[http://www.onwar.com/aced/data/papa/polisario1975.htm ''The Sahara War 1975–1991''] – onwar.com</ref> From the mid-1980s on, Morocco largely managed to keep POLISARIO troops at bay by building a huge [[Moroccan Wall|sand wall]], staffed by an army roughly the same size as the entire Sahrawi population, enclosing the [[Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara|Southern Provinces]] within it. The enclosure contained most of the economically useful parts of Western Sahara, including [[Bou Craa]], [[El-Aaiun]], and [[Smara]]. The Moroccan army destroyed all the posts created by the Polisario and won decisively the majority of battles, but artillery strikes and sniping attacks by the guerrillas continued, and Morocco was economically and politically strained by the war.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://newint.org/features/1997/12/05/facts|title=Web Page Of Facts About The Western Sahara Including Landuse, Health, Population, Economy And Human Rights.|date=December 5, 1997|website=New Internationalist}}</ref>

In the 1990s, Moroccan troops went to Angola with the three UN Angola Verifications Missions, [[United Nations Angola Verification Mission I|UNAVEM I]], [[United Nations Angola Verification Mission II|UNAVEM II]], and [[United Nations Angola Verification Mission III|UNAVEM III]]. They were also in Somalia, with [[United Nations Operation in Somalia I|UNOSOM I]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/dpko/co_mission/unosom1facts.html|title=United Nations Operation in Somalia I: facts and figures}}</ref> the U.S.-led [[Unified Task Force]] (UNITAF), known by its U.S. codename of 'Restore Hope' and the follow-on [[United Nations Operation in Somalia II|UNOSOM II]], They saw fighting during the [[Battle of Mogadishu (1993)|Battle of Mogadishu]] to rescue a U.S. anti-militia assault force. Other peace support involvement during the 1990s included [[United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia]] (UNTAC) in Cambodia, and the missions in the former Yugoslavia: [[IFOR]], [[SFOR]], and [[Kosovo Force|KFOR]].

On 14 July 1999, the Moroccan Armed Forces took part in the Bastille Day parade on the [[Avenue des Champs-Élysées|Champs-Élysées]], which was exceptional for a non-French armed forces, at the invitation of then French President [[Jacques Chirac]].<ref>[http://www.laformation.ma/guide-metiers/secteurs-a-la-une/formations-des-far.html Le 14 juillet 1999, les Forces armées royales ont défilé sur les Champs-Élysées].</ref>

==Branches==
[[File:Moroccan air force F-16 flies above Morocco during Exercise African Lion.jpg|thumb|A Moroccan [[F-16]] fighter]]
[[File:Moroccan M109A5 howitzer, 2012-03.jpg|thumb|A Self Propelled Howitzer [[M109_howitzer#M109A5|M109A5]] of the 15th Royal Moroccan Artillery Group]]
[[File:Royal Moroccan Navy frigate Mohammed VI (701) underway in the Atlantic Ocean on 25 April 2018 (180425-N-GC347-1193).JPG|thumb|Frigate [[Moroccan frigate Mohammed VI|''Mohammed VI'']], the most modern and flagship of the Alawite fleet]]
The modern Moroccan military is composed of the following branches:

===The Royal Army===
{{Main|Royal Moroccan Army}}
The Royal Moroccan Army is the branch of the Royal Moroccan Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. The army is about 375,000 troops strong,<ref name="Balance359"/> In case of war or a state of siege, an additional force of 250,000 Reservists and paramilitary forces, including 50,000 regulars of the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie and 70,000 [[Auxiliary Forces]] come under the Ministry of Defense command. The Moroccan Army helped with the annexation of Western Sahara which is disputed. 

====Royal Guard====
{{Main|Moroccan Royal Guard}}
The Moroccan Royal Guard is officially part of the Royal Moroccan Army, However, it is under the direct operational control of the Royal Military Household of His Majesty the King, The sole duty of the guard is to provide for the security and safety of the King and royal family of Morocco with 3,500 personnel.<ref name="Balance359"/>

===The Royal Air Force===
{{Main|Royal Moroccan Air Force}}
The Royal Moroccan Air Force is the air force branch of the Moroccan Armed Forces, It employs 13,000 personnel<ref name="Balance359"/> and is equipped with more than 300 aircraft. In the 21st century, the Royal Moroccan Air Force started a progressive modernization program of its aging fleet and its technical and operational capacities.

===The Royal Navy===
{{Main|Royal Moroccan Navy}}
The Royal Navy is the branch of the Moroccan Armed Forces responsible of conducting naval operations, 7,800 personnel strong<ref name="Balance359"/> Its mission includes the protection of Moroccan territory and sovereignty, as well as the control of Morocco's {{convert|81000|sqnmi|km2|order=flip|adj=on}} Exclusive Economic Zone. Given Morocco's significant coastline (2,952&nbsp;km) and strategic position overseeing the strait of Gibraltar, it (with Spain and the United Kingdom) is deeply involved in the security of this important international waterway.

===Royal Gendarmerie===
{{Main|Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie}}
The Moroccan Royal Gendarmerie is the Gendarmerie body of Morocco. The legislation which founded the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie describes it as a public force designed to guarantee public security and public order and the implementation of laws. This legislation text attaches the Gendarmerie to the Royal Moroccan Army, then constituting a military force in its structure, administration and command forms. It consists of officers and NCOs.

==History of participation in peacekeeping operations==
[[File:African Lion 2021 210609-A-XM236-1002.jpg|thumb|Moroccan soldiers during African Lion 2021 exercises]]

===Congo 1960–1961===
Congo [[United Nations Operation in the Congo]]

By 20 July 1960 Morocco had deployed 1,250 troops in Congo.

===Somalia 1992–1994===
Somalia [[United Nations Operation in Somalia I|UNOSOM I]], [[Unified Task Force|UNITAF]], [[United Nations Operation in Somalia II|UNOSOM II]]

===Bosnia and Herzegovina 1996–2007===
Bosnia and Herzegovina [[Implementation Force|IFOR]], [[SFOR]], [[EUFOR Althea]]

===Kosovo 1998-1999===
Kosovo [[Kosovo War]]
{{Main|Kosovo Force}}
Morocco has deployed one company of soldiers<ref name="IISS 2013, pp. 396" /> to contribute in the NATO-led international peacekeeping force which was responsible for establishing a secure environment in Kosovo.

===Haiti 2004–2006===

Haiti [[United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti|MINUSTAH]]

In 2004, Morocco provided an infantry company as part of a joint Spanish-Moroccan battalion, which was deployed in Fort Liberté, in the north-eastern part of Haiti. Disagreements between the United Nations and the Spanish government led to Spain´s withdrawal from the mission, leaving the Moroccans in charge of a much larger area than what was initially designed. The last Moroccan troops left Haiti in 2006, and the area was covered by a battalion from Uruguay, which already had another unit in the South of the country. About six Moroccan Army officers served in the mission HQ during this period.

===Democratic Republic of the Congo since 1999===
{{Main|MONUSCO}}
Morocco has deployed 6 observers, one mechanised infantry battalion and one field hospital<ref name="IISS 2013, pp. 396" /> to participate in the United Nations Security Council efforts to monitor the peace process of the Second Congo War.

===Ivory Coast since 2004===
Ivory Coast [[United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire|UNOCI]]

{{Main|United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire}}
Morocco has deployed one infantry battalion<ref name="IISS 2013, pp. 396">[[#IISS2013|IISS 2013]], pp. 396</ref> to participate in the UNOCI peacekeeping mission whose objective is "to facilitate the implementation by the Ivorian parties of the peace agreement signed by them in January 2003" (which aimed to end the Ivorian Civil War). The two main Ivorian parties here are the Ivorian Government forces who control the south of the country, and the New Forces (former rebels), who control the north. The UNOCI mission aims to control a "zone of confidence" across the centre of the country separating the two parties.

===Central African Republic since 2013===
Central African Republic [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 2031|BINUCA]], [[MINUSCA]]

{{Main|EUFOR RCA}}

The Moroccan Royal Armed Forces has sent a contingent of 777 Moroccan soldiers<ref>The Military Balance 2023, page 442</ref>{{fcn|date=September 2023}} on December 25, 2013 for the Central African Republic to be deployed in the UN Integrated Peace building Office (BINUCA). Moroccan authorities also said they stand ready to support the Central African Republic in its path toward peace and stability.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.moroccanembassy.sa/index.php?route=information/news&news_id=112|title=UN Secretary General Grateful to Morocco for Action for Stability in Central African Republic|website=www.moroccanembassy.sa}}</ref>


==Motto==
The Royal Moroccan Armed Forces motto, which graces every military base, banner, and ship, is: God, The Homeland, and The King.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.al-bab.com/maroc/gov/con92.htm|title=Constitution of Morocco, 1992}}</ref>
* God: The Creator of all destiny, by His Mercy we draw from, He ordains our choice to the right path.
* The Homeland: The Land that begets our bounty, from which we sustain ourselves we protect its integrity and defend it from all enemies.
* King: Our commander and guide, he guides our renaissance and development, protector of our people's rights.

==Gallery==
<gallery class="center" widths="220" heights="150">
File:Moroccan M109A5 howitzer, 2012-03.jpg|RMA's [[M109 howitzer|M109A5]] howitzer.
File:M60 morocco.jpg|Moroccan [[M60A3]] during a 2006 Army expo.
File:WHAP During Defence Expo 2108.jpg|[[TATA Kestrel]] to be manufactured in Morocco as part of modernization of Army.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-09-30 |title=Morocco and Tata Advanced Systems Sign Landmark Defence Manufacturing Deal |url=https://www.financialexpress.com/business/defence-morocco-and-tata-advanced-systems-sign-landmark-defence-manufacturing-deal-3626501/ |access-date=2024-10-03 |website=Financialexpress |language=en}}</ref>
File:Lion120051.jpg|US Marines and Moroccan soldiers during exercise African Lion in Tan tan.
File:Moroccan Mirage F1CH 7.jpg|Royal Moroccan Air Force [[Dassault Mirage F1|Mirage F1]].
File:Floreal Class Frigate.JPEG|Floréal Class Mohammed V.
File:Moroccan Eurocopter Puma.jpg|Royal Moroccan Air Force [[Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma|SA330 Puma]].
File:180425-N-EA818-1230 (39924288270) (cropped).jpg|Moroccan FREMM frigate
File:DOD-7651 (49869042718).jpg|Moroccan SF Polaris MRZR-2/4
File:African Lion 2021 210609-A-XM236-1004.jpg|Moroccan soldier using the Mk19 grenade launcher
File:Moroccans provide training for neighboring militaries in Africa during Flintlock 20 (50110396998).jpg|Moroccan M-SOF operator training Mauritanian forces
File:Moroccan Mirage F1CH 7 (modified).jpg|Moroccan Mirage F-1 in flight
File:Moroccan F-16 (cropped).JPG|Royal Moroccan Air Force F-16 at the 2012 Marrakech Air Show
</gallery>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*{{Cite journal|last=International Institute for Strategic Studies|author-link=International Institute for Strategic Studies|date=February 2021|title=The Military Balance, Volume 121, Issue 1 (2021)|url=https://www.tandfonline.com/toc/tmib20/121/1|journal=The Military Balance|location=[[London]]|publisher=[[Routledge]]|volume=121|issue=1|pages=|doi=|issn=0459-7222|ref=IISS2021}}

==See also==
* [[Auxiliary Forces]] a paramilitary force composed of army veterans which, following the command of the Ministry of the Interior, supplements the military, Gendarmerie and police when needed.
* [[Battle of Smara (1979)]]

{{Morocco topics}}
{{Military of Africa}}
{{Military of the Arab world}}
{{Morocco Military}}
{{Moroccan security forces}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Military Of Morocco}}
[[Category:Military of Morocco]]
[[Category:1956 establishments in Morocco]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1956]]