Editing Botswana (section)

===Foreign relations and military===
{{Main|Foreign relations of Botswana|Botswana Defence Force}}
[[File:Botswanatroopsboardplane.png|thumb|Botswana soldiers board a [[Botswana Defence Force]] plane to Mozambique in July 2021.]]
At the time of independence, Botswana had no armed forces. It was only after the [[Rhodesia]]n and [[South African Army|South African armies]] attacked the [[Zimbabwe People's Revolutionary Army]] and [[Umkhonto we Sizwe]]<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-20-mn-6620-story.html | work=Los Angeles Times | first=Michael | last=Parks | title=S. Africa Raids 3 Nearby Nations : Attacks Rebel Bases in Capitals of Zimbabwe, Zambia and Botswana | date=20 May 1986 | access-date=24 November 2011 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111150242/http://articles.latimes.com/1986-05-20/news/mn-6620_1_african-national-congress | archive-date=11 January 2012 | url-status=live}}</ref> bases respectively that the [[Botswana Defence Force]] (BDF) was formed in 1977.<ref>[http://www.gov.bw/en/Ministries--Authorities/Ministries/State-President/Botswana-Defence-Force-BDF/About-the-BDF1/History-of-the-BDF/ Republic of Botswana – Government portal] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706162757/http://www.gov.bw/en/Ministries--Authorities/Ministries/State-President/Botswana-Defence-Force-BDF/About-the-BDF1/History-of-the-BDF/ |date=6 July 2011 }}. Gov.bw. Retrieved on 27 October 2016.</ref> The president is [[commander-in-chief]] of the armed forces and appoints a defence council. In 2019, Botswana signed the UN [[treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament&nbsp;– No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |publisher=United Nations Treaty Collection |date=7 July 2017 |access-date=4 June 2024 |archive-date=6 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190806220546/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |url-status=live }}</ref>

Following political changes in South Africa and the region, the BDF's missions have increasingly focused on preventing [[poaching]], [[Emergency management|preparing for disasters]], and supporting foreign [[peacekeeping]]. The United States has been the largest single foreign contributor to the development of the [[Botswana Defence Force|BDF]], and a large segment of its officer corps have received U.S. training. The Botswana government gave the United States permission to explore the possibility of establishing an Africa Command ([[AFRICOM]]) base in the country.<ref>Pounds, Lance (14 December 2015) [http://www.africom.mil/media-room/article/27819/botswana-defence-force-u-s-army-leaders-meet-in-europe Botswana Defence Force, U.S. Army Leaders Meet in Europe] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170718193102/http://www.africom.mil/media-room/article/27819/botswana-defence-force-u-s-army-leaders-meet-in-europe |date=18 July 2017 }}. U.S. Army Africa</ref>

Botswana is the 50th most peaceful country in the world, according to the 2024 [[Global Peace Index]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=2024 Global Peace Index |url=https://www.economicsandpeace.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/GPI-2024-web.pdf}}</ref>