Editing Netherlands Armed Forces (section)

=== Personnel ===
The Netherlands Armed Forces are a professional military, [[conscription in the Netherlands]] having been suspended in 1996 with the exception of Aruba and Curaçao.<ref>"Suspended" in this case means that no conscripts are called up in the Netherlands; the legal mechanism for the draft is still in place.</ref> All military branches are open to female recruits. In 2018 the Ministry of Defence announced that the submarine service will begin accepting female recruits for positions as officer, NCO and sailor.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Gain |first1=Nathan |title=Dutch female sailors now admitted for submarine service |url=https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/01/dutch-female-sailors-now-admitted-for-submarine-service/ |access-date=15 February 2021 |work=Naval News |date=22 January 2020}}</ref>

The [[Dutch Ministry of Defence]] employs over 70,000 personnel, including both civilian and military personnel.<ref>{{cite web |title=Aantallen personeel |url=https://www.defensie.nl/onderwerpen/overdefensie/het-verhaal-van-defensie/aantallen-personeel |website=defensie.nl |date=1 September 2024 |publisher=Ministry of Defence |access-date=3 December 2024}}</ref> The distribution of personnel in the Defence organization, including the Armed Forces, on 1 September 2024 was as follows:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Service !! Military !! Reserve !! Civilian !! Total
|-
| Navy || align="right"| 7336 || align="right"| 1,632 || align="right"| 2,989 || align="right"| '''11,957'''
|-
| Army || align="right"| 16,766 || align="right"| 4,405 || align="right"| 3,783 || align="right"| '''24,954'''
|-
| Air Force || align="right"| 6,653 || align="right"| 823 || align="right"| 1,245 || align="right"| '''8,721'''
|-
| Marechaussee || align="right"| 6,913 || align="right"| 406 || align="right"| 847 || align="right"| '''8,166'''
|-
| Central Staff || align="right"| 1,304 || align="right"| 23 || align="right"| 2,675 || align="right"| '''4,002'''
|-
| Defence Support Command || align="right"| 2,605 || align="right"| 175 || align="right"| 7,422 || align="right"| '''10,202'''
|-
| Defence Materiel Organisation || align="right"| 728 || align="right"| 19 || align="right"| 5,251 || align="right"| '''5,998'''
|-
| '''Total''' || align="right"| '''42,305''' || align="right"| '''7,483''' || align="right"| '''24,212''' || align="right"| '''74,000'''
|}

In March 2025 it was announced that the Dutch government wants to increase the size of the Netherlands Armed Forces from 70,000 to 200,000 personnel.<ref>{{cite web |date=24 March 2025 |title=Kabinet wil veel grotere krijgsmacht: 'Defensie moet continu paraat staan' |url=https://nos.nl/artikel/2560981-kabinet-wil-veel-grotere-krijgsmacht-defensie-moet-continu-paraat-staan |website=NOS |language=Dutch}}</ref>