The Swiss Army is, in many aspects, the admiration of many, and has been for many years. With a population of only 8 million inhabitants, and only 3,600 professional soldiers, it can in fact mobilize in a few days 8,000 soldiers, and 35,000 men out of a theoretical workforce of 140,000 men, according to the DEVA (Army Development) plan. entered into force in 2014.
In addition, it is remarkably equipped for a country of this size, for example 134 modernized Leopard 2A4 tanks, 190 CV90 infantry fighting vehicles, 924 Piranha armored vehicles as well as 36 combat aircraft (today F5 and F -18, tomorrow F-35A) and 25 Cougar and Super Puma maneuvering helicopters, despite a reduced budget of 5 billion Swiss francs representing only 0.7% of the country's GDP, which must be brought to 1% by 2035 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Based on the principle of a militia army, the Swiss army is based on compulsory military service for men aged 18 to 34, broken down into initial training of 4 months, followed by periods of 3 weeks each year of deployment. up to date, until reaching 245 days of service or 34 years.
Beyond that, staff remain available in the event of an attack, even if they are no longer required to carry out their annual update. Officers, for their part, must serve longer as their rank increases.
Despite this centuries-old mechanism which has ensured the security of the country, the Swiss Army today faces significant difficulties in maintaining its strength. Indeed, each year, during the initial training period, up to 7,000 conscripts decide to turn to civilian service, rather than joining the armies.
In fact, each year, it loses 2,000 additional soldiers to its theoretical strength, while it simultaneously faces significant operational difficulties .
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