Why do most countries have an active military force?
We have all been taught that military forces are very important to any nation. A nation shall have an active military force so that it could defend itself from external attacks and protect its sovereignty. Also, there is always a threat of riots and terrorism inside the country which can be tackled with the help of an active military force.
The worldwide race of strong army and military force
Countries around the world allocate substantial amounts of budget towards active military for the very purpose. For instance, if we look at the United States: the country with the strongest military in the world, it allocates a budget of $587 towards its military.
The opposing delima!
While there is an ongoing race among different nations to get the rank of possessing the strongest military and imposing a pressure on other countries, there are some countries that don’t even care of having a military.
Indulging in the race of strongest and best military is the second question, they are not even interested in having a military! Thereby these countries do not have an active military or an army!
Countries without an army/Active military force
According to the statistics, there are 22 countries that do not possess an active military force.
Costa Rica
Andorra
Dominica
Grenada
Haiti
Iceland
Kiribati
Liechtenstein
The Marshall Islands
Mauritius
Micronesia
Monaco
Nauru
Palau
Panama
St. Lucia
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
Tuvalu
Vanuatu
Vatican City
Why don’t these countries have an army?
The reason differs from country to country. Many of these countries are small in size and do not need much protection. Some countries are Islands, which feel unthreatened. Also, some have been once a part of a bigger country, yet their independence caused limited resources due to which they could not afford a military.
Some countries have made an agreement with their neighboring countries: they can hire military forces of their neighboring countries whenever required.
Costa Rica needs special mention here!
Costa Rica did have an army once. However, after winning the civil war in 1948, it said “no” to the army for good. Since then, every year on December 1st, the country celebrates Army Abolition Day.
The military headquarters were shut down, the military compounds were turned into a national art museum. Since then the country is consuming its Military budget towards health care, education, and environmental protection.
It does have a police force that tends to enforce law and order. Today it stands among the happiest countries of the world.
However, Costa Rica and the rest of the 21 nations are putting a question mark to the military forces of other countries. They have shown the world that without military a nation can survive.
