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But these changes have, in the face of fewer overall
resources, come at a cost. No armed-service branch
seems to have borne the brunt of these budget cuts
more than the land forces, with troop numbers in
some cases halved and equipment budgets slashed by
two-thirds. 11
The professionalization of NATO armies began in
the 1990s. With the exceptions of Norway, Denmark,
Estonia, Greece, and Turkey, most armies are now
wholly professional. This meant a complete change
not only in format, but also in the very way forces are
structured. Thus, between 1996 and 2013, numbers
in the French Army decreased from 268,572 to just
more than 119,000. In the United Kingdom (UK), current
troop numbers (99,800 in 2013) will be brought
down to 82,000 by 2020. 12 For Germany’s army, the
trend is even clearer: the ongoing reform envisages
a maximum of 61,000 soldiers. This compares with a
total of 239,950 troops in 1996, of which 124,700 were
conscripts.
The cuts are even more substantial among the former
Warsaw Pact members. Joining NATO spurred
them to place a priority on quality of land forces over
quantity. For example, Polish land forces now total
just 25 percent of the numbers they boasted just 20
years ago, while the Bulgarian army has shrunk from
50,400 (33,300 conscripts) in 1996 to 16,300 in 2013
and has eliminated all four tank brigades in favor of
lighter infantry and more mobile mechanized units. 13
Throughout the alliance, units are being disbanded,
facilities closed, and territorial defense structures
reviewed.
This erosion of troop numbers limits the possible
number of operational commitments a government
can make and the size of the contingents that can be
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