Republic of the Congo

the FAC's primary focuses are internal and maritime security; since its creation in 1961, the FAC has had a turbulent history; it has been sidelined by some national leaders in favor of personal militias, endured an internal rebellion (1996), and clashed with various rebel groups and political or ethnic militias (1993-1996, 2002-2005, 2017); during the 1997-1999 civil war, the military generally split along ethnic lines, with most northern officers supporting eventual winner SASSOU-Nguesso, and most southerners backing the rebels; others joined ethnic-based factions loyal to regional warlords; forces backing SASSOU-Nguesso were supported by Angolan troops and received some French assistance; the FAC also has undergone at least three reorganizations that included the incorporation of former rebel combatants and various ethnic and political militias; in recent years, France has provided some advice and training, and a military cooperation agreement was signed with Russia in 2019 (2025)

has about 175 mostly police personnel deployed to the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (2025)

Congolese Armed Forces (Forces Armees Congolaises, FAC): Army, Navy, Congolese Air Force, National Gendarmerie Ministry of Interior: National Police (2025)

note: the National Gendarmerie (GN) is a paramilitary force with domestic law enforcement and security responsibilities; it is under the Ministry of Defense, but also reports to the Ministry of Interior; the GN nominally includes the Republican Guard (GR), which is responsible for presidential security and has a separate command structure

18-25 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women (2025)

the FAC has a mixed inventory of Chinese, French, Italian, Russian/Soviet, and South African armaments (2025)

approximately 12-14,000 active FAC, including Gendarmerie (2025)