Republic of China Armed Forces
combined military forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan)
The Republic of China Armed Forces (Chinese: 中華民國國軍; pinyin: Zhōnghuá Mínguó Guójūn; lit. 'Republic of China National Military') are the military forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan), which is now based primarily on Taiwan and surrounding islands, but formerly governed mainland China prior to 1949. The armed forces comprise the Army, Navy (including the Marine Corps), Air Force, and Military Police Force. The military operates under the civilian control of the Ministry of National Defense, a cabinet-level body overseen by the Legislative Yuan.
Formerly known as the National Revolutionary Army (NRA), it was renamed the Republic of China Armed Forces in 1947 due to the implementation of the newly promulgated Constitution of the Republic of China. It was also historically referred to as the Chinese National Armed Forces (CNAF) prior to the establishment of the People's Republic of China on the Chinese mainland and the gradual loss of international recognition in the 1970s by the United Nations and many countries, including the ROC's close ally, the United States.
Until the late 1970s, the primary mission of the ROC Armed Forces was to prepare for a counteroffensive aimed at retaking mainland China from the Communists, as exemplified by efforts such as Project National Glory. Following strategic shifts and Taiwan's evolving political landscape, the military's focus turned towards the defence of Taiwan itself against potential invasion by the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of the People's Republic of China (PRC), which continues to be perceived as the principal threat.
The ROC Armed Forces today maintain an approximate active strength of 150,000 personnel, with the capability to mobilise up to 1.67 million reservists in times of national emergency or full-scale war. A significant pool of former conscripts is available, as all able-bodied male citizens of the ROC are required to undertake at least one year of compulsory military service upon reaching the age of 18.
The public source identifies “Republic of China Armed Forces” as combined military forces of the Republic of China (Taiwan). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Republic, China and Armed.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 25, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q458428. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1949 and 1947.
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This entry incorporates text from “Republic of China Armed Forces” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.