People's Revolutionary Army (Liothidia)

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People's Revolutionary Army
Volksrevolutionäre Armee
PRAEmblem.png
Emblem of the People's Revolutionary Army
Founded1918
Current form2012
Service branchesPeople's Revolutionary Army Land Force

People's Revolutionary Army Air Force

People's Revolutionary Army Navy

People's State Police
HeadquartersMinistry of Defence, Rahden, Liothidia
Leadership
Secretary of the Revolutionary Defence CommissionGeorg von Carstein
Minister of DefenceReinhardt Dressler
Marshal of the People's Revolutionary ArmyReinhardt Dressler
Manpower
Military age16-45 years old
ConscriptionYes
1-2 years
Active personnel1,183,628 (2018)
Reserve personnel2,572,500 (2018)
Expenditures
Budget4.1%
Percent of GDP$108.9 billion


The People's Revolutionary Army (Liothidic: Volksrevolutionäre Armee) is the military of Liothidia and encompasses the Land Force (PRAGF), the Navy (PRAN), the Air Force (PRAAF), the People's Revolutionary Combatant Group and the People's State Police. The First Secretary of the Democratic People's Republic heads the armed forces as the Secretary of the Revolutionary Defence Commission, though de-facto, the chief of staff of the PRA is the commander-in-chief, with the First Secretary providing party-oversight. According to the Liothidian Constitution of 1918, the Central Committee of State has the exclusive power to declare war and peace as well as having the final say on deployment of forces.

History

Five branches

Ground Force

The PRALF is the primary land force of the PRA. It first officially began according to regime historiography as a coalition of armed workers and defected soldiers during the August Revolution, who fought against royalist holdouts and were the primary driving force in the overthrow of the monarchy. Following the revolution, the PRALF reformed along the revolutionary concept of a "People's and Party's Army", while the revolutionary government attempted to maintain a high-level quality of officers in wake of mass-purges, it was forced to spend the next decade rebuilding the officer corps to pre-revolutionary levels. The PRALF would later engage in the Second Lio-Vannoisian War, where it saw extensive action before entering a stalemate, the war would with the mutual use of atomic weapons. Following the war, the PRALF underwent rapid reconstruction, reform and modernisation. During the 1960s, the policy of "Militärische Potenz - Revolutionäre Sicherheit" (Military Potency - Revolutionary Security) was adopted, in which the PRALF would receive the necessary resources to maintain as much a peer-position to the militaries of the Belisarian Community as possible. Throughout the late 20th century the PRALF and PRA in general would be deployed across the globe to support communist guerillas and governments. During the 1970s, an estimated 1,200 Liothidian advisers were present during the First Abalessian War. From the 1980s onward, the PRALF underwent significant changes and modernisation, in doctrine, structure, organisation and equipment, which continues to this day. It is one of the largest land forces in the world with 686,492 active personnel and 975,000 reservists.

Air Force

The air force of Liothidia was founded as an independent service arm on 11 July 1920, as the People's Revolutionary Air Corps. During the 1930s it underwent major expansion with the introduction of mono-wing fighter aircraft, bombers and a doctrinal focus on supporting ground offensives. The PRAC would see extensive service during the Second Lio-Vannoisian War, including the mass terror bombing of Allied cities across Belisaria. The PRAC was also the first military air force to operate jet-engine aircraft in the form of the AK-044, however the war inflicted significant damage upon the Air Corps, resulting in its reform into the People's Revolutionary Army Air Force. From the 1960s onward, the air force was rebuilt and modernised with new jet-engined fighters, strategic and naval bombers and close-air support. Today, the PRAAF remains one of the largest in the world, with over 1,100 aircraft.

Luftstürmkorps

The Luftstürmkorps (literally, Air Assault Corps) is the Airborne forces of Liothidia and the smallest branch of the PRA, with only 35,000 active and reserve personnel. From 1986 until 2010 it was one of the largest airborne forces in the world, but it since has been reduced to improve quality and professionalism. It is widely considered the most elite unit in the PRA and is designed for swift deployment anywhere within the "Immediate Region" in Belisaria. Since 2000, it has received new equipment, aircraft and airborne tanks and fighting vehicles.

Navy

The navy of Liothidia was established in 1918 aboard the Eschau, a battleship that mutinied in support of revolutionaries in the port city of Vechta. The Imperial Navy remained intact following the revolution, with a significant portion of the officer corps being supportive of the revolution. It grew and modernised steadily following the revolution, but was utlimately crippled in the Second Lio-Vannoisian War following pitched battles with the Commonwealth Navy and Latin Navy. Following the war's end, the Navy remained the smallest of branches and one of the smallest in Belisaria, with a focus being solely on coastal defence. However, from the late 1980s onward, the Navy was once again the focus of modernisation and expansion, with the ultimate aim of producing a multi-regional blue water navy. This was achieved in 2004 with the launch of the LNS Rotte Fahne and LNS Rotte August in 2006, the country's two aircraft carriers. Today, the PRAN operates a significant surface and submarine fleet, tasked with protecting Liothidian shipping and maintaining a dominant position in the Northern Sea.

Combatant Group

The Combatant Group is the volunteer popular-militia and army reserve force of the PRA. It was formed out of the popular revolutionary groups formed during the overthrow of the monarchy in 1918. From the revolution onward, the Combatant Group remained solely an extension of the ruling Socialist Worker's Party. Although the Combatant Group in peacetime takes part in many civil projects, including construction, law enforcement, riot control and border security, during wartime it transitions into a domestic militia and the PRAGF's formal army reserve. It currently possesses 55,000 active personnel and 200,000 reservists.

People's State Police

International stance