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The Azerbaijani Armed Forces were re-established according to the Law of the Republic of Azerbaijan on the Armed Forces of Azerbaijan from October 9, 1991.
Initially, the equipment and facilities of Azerbaijan's army were those of the 4th Army (Soviet Union). The Armed Forces have three branches: the Army of Azerbaijan, Air Force and Air Defence Force (a united branch), and the Azerbaijan Navy. Besides the Armed Forces there are several government paramilitary agencies that can be involved in state defence when needed. These are the Internal Troops of Azerbaijan of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and forces of the State Border Service (Azerbaijan), which includes the Coast Guard as well. The Azerbaijan National Guard is a reserve component of the Azerbaijan Army. It operates as a semi-independent entity of the Azerbaijan Defense Department.
The current Defense Minister is colonel-general Safar Abiyev, and the Chief of Staff is colonel-general Najmaddin Sadykhov.
Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Azerbaijan has been trying to further develop its armed forces into a professional, well trained, and mobile military. Since 2005 Azerbaijan has increased its military budget to $2.46 billion in 2009. Based on the 2008 statistics the country has over 600 Main Battle Tanks, 900 Armored Combat Vehicles and over 720 Artillery Systems. Its air force has about 106 aircraft and 35 helicopters.
Azerbaijan has its own Defense Industry, which manufactures small arms and military aircraft. There are hopes to produce other military equipment.
Azerbaijan joined the U.S.-led coalition against Iraq during the Iraq War, and from 2006 to 2008 sent troops to the northern parts of Iraq. It provided 250 troops. One hundred soldiers were sent on December 29, 2004 to reinforce the 150 soldiers already in the country. They provided security for local Turkmen people, religious sites and convoys. Troops from Azerbaijan serve with the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.
Read more about this topic: Military History Of Azerbaijan
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