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Bolivian Army

A Bolivian soldier stands guard at the entry control point during training in October 2002

The Bolivian Army (Spanish: Ejército Boliviano) is the land force branch of the Armed Forces of Bolivia. Figures on the size and composition of the Bolivian army vary considerably, with little official data available. It is estimated that the army has between 26,000[1] and 60,000 [2][3] men. On June 26, 2024, the General of the Army, General Juan José Zúñiga, was dismissed and replaced with José Wilson Sánchez due to the former leading the 2024 Bolivian coup attempt against President Luis Acre.[4]

History

Organization

Combat units directly under the Army general command

Special forces command

The Special Forces command controls the following units:

Army aviation command

Regional

The Bolivian Army has six military regions (regiones militares—RMs) covering the various Departments of Bolivia:

Army Divisions

The army is organized into ten territorial divisions, titled Army Divisions (AD), plus a mechanized division, each of which, with the exception of Viacha, occupy a region generally corresponding to the administrative departments, with some overlapping. These and their respective divisional headquarters and constituent units are:

SK-105 Kürassier 19-ton light tank with 105 mm gun in oscillating turret

Regimental abbreviations

RIE/IR/PIR: infantry regiment

RC/ACR: cavalry regiment

RA: artillery regiment

Bat.Ing./CEB: Engineer battalion

The 11 divisions control the following units:

Snipers carrying Dragunov SVD rifles.

The Army maintains a small fleet of utility aircraft, primarily to support headquarters.

Equipment

Bolivian SK-105 Kürassier light tank.
7.5 cm FK 18 during a parade in Cochabamba.
Bolivian EE-9 Cascavel AFV.

Vehicles

Aircraft

Uniforms

Army officers, NCOs, and enlisted personnel generally wear gray service uniforms. In tropical areas they wear gray-green service uniforms. Army fatigue uniforms are olive green, and combat uniforms consist of US woodland pattern camouflage and desert pattern camouflage. The standard headgear for enlisted personnel is a beret bearing the national colors of red, yellow, and green. Armoured troops and paratroopers are distinguished by black berets. Special forces wear distinctive camouflage uniforms with green berets.

2024 coup attempt

On June 26, 2024, the General of the Bolivian Army, General Juan José Zúñiga lead an attempted coup against the democratically elected President, Luis Acre, who was elected in the 2020 Bolivian General election with 55.1% of the vote.[8] The army stormed the Presidential Palace in the capital of La Paz. Subsequently, the Generals of the three branches of the military were dismissed, with Juan José Zúñiga, the leader of the coup attempt, being arrested the same day.[4] He was replaced as General of the Army by José Wilson Sánchez.

See also

References

  1. ^ "CIA World Facts" (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  2. ^ "Evo y los militares, una relación con altibajos que tuvo un abrupto fin" (in Spanish). 13 November 2019. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  3. ^ "Sesenta mil conscriptos tendrán formación técnica" (in Spanish). 2 May 2005. Retrieved 7 January 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Bolivian police arrest leader of apparent coup attempt". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2024-06-29.
  5. ^ a b "ORBAT del Ejercito de Bolivia". Archived from the original on 2009-02-09. Retrieved 2009-08-28.
  6. ^ "World Military Aircraft Inventory", Aerospace Source Book 2007, Aviation Week & Space Technology, January 15, 2007.
  7. ^ a b c d "World Air Forces 2021". FlightGlobal. 4 December 2020. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
  8. ^ "2020 Bolivia Election". Bloomberg. 21 October 2020. Retrieved 2024-06-29.

External links