kids encyclopedia robot

Singapore Armed Forces facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
SAFTI MI OCS 01
The Officer Cadet School building within the SAFTI Military Institute as seen from the northwest

The Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) is the military arm of the Total Defence of the Republic of Singapore; as well as the military component of the Ministry of Defence.

The SAF has three services: the Singapore Army, the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) and the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN). The SAF protects the interests, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Singapore from external threats.

The SAF relies heavily on a large pool of conscripts in the active and reserve forces. It has an active strength of around 71,600 personnel and is capable of mobilising over 900,000 reservists. National Servicemen (NSmen) make up more than 80% of its military defence system and form the backbone of the SAF.

SAF uses the SAR-21 rifle.

Images for kids

  • Singapore Armed Forces Mentor Local Laborers, Open Regional Health Training Center in Bamyan

    Soldiers of the SAF speaking with local contractors at the site for the Singaporean-funded Bamyan Regional Health Training Center in Afghanistan

  • BMT passing out parade 100115

    Singapore Armed Forces Basic Military Training passing out parade ceremony

  • SAF old generation uniforms AOH 2022 300522

    Old uniforms on display at the Army Open House 2022

kids search engine
All content from Kiddle encyclopedia articles (including the article images and facts) can be freely used under Attribution-ShareAlike license, unless stated otherwise. Cite this article:
Singapore Armed Forces Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.