Military - note Tunisia, in 5 editions.

as of 2021, 2022, the Tunisian military’s primary operational areas of focus were counter-terrorism, counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, and border security; it was conducting counter-terrorism counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations against al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Islamic State of ash-Sham (ISIS)-linked militants who have been fighting a low-intensity insurgency, mostly in the mountainous region along the border with Algeria, particularly the Chaambi Mountains near the city of Kasserine; the military maintained the lead role for security in this area and also routinely conducted joint operations with Algerian security forces against these groups, as well to counter smuggling and trafficking activities; the military in recent years also has increased its role in securing the southern border against militant activity, smuggling, and trafficking from war-torn Libya; since 2015, Tunisia has constructed a complex structure of berms, trenches, and water-filled moats, complemented by electronic surveillance equipment such as motion detectors, ground surveillance radars, and infrared sensors along the 220-kilometer border with Libya; in the remote southern areas of the border with Libya, buffer/exclusion zones have also been established where the military has the lead for counter-terrorism counterterrorism efforts; outside of these border areas, the Ministry of Interior (MOI) has the lead responsibility for counter-terrorism in Tunisia, particularly for urban areas; the National Police Anti-Terrorism Brigade (BAT) and the National Guard Special Unit have the lead for MOI counterterrorism operations
Tunisia has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US; MNNA is a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation; while MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments (2022)

as of 2022, the Tunisian military’s primary FAT is responsible for territorial defense and internal security; its operational areas of focus were counterterrorism, counterinsurgency, are countering Islamic terrorist groups and border security; assisting with securing the border; it was is conducting counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations against militant groups linked to al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Islamic State of ash-Sham (ISIS)-linked militants (ISIS) who have been are fighting a low-intensity insurgency, mostly in the mountainous region along the border with Algeria, particularly the Chaambi Mountains near the city of Kasserine; the military maintained has the lead role for security in this area and also routinely conducted conducts joint operations with Algerian security forces against these groups, as well to counter smuggling and trafficking activities; the military FAT in recent years also has increased its role in securing the southern border against militant activity, smuggling, and trafficking from war-torn Libya; since 2015, Tunisia has constructed a complex structure system of berms, trenches, and water-filled moats, complemented by electronic surveillance equipment such as motion detectors, ground surveillance radars, and infrared sensors along the 220-kilometer border with Libya; in the remote southern areas of the border with Libya, buffer/exclusion zones have also been established where the military has the lead for counterterrorism efforts; outside of these border areas, the Ministry of Interior (MOI) has the lead responsibility for counter-terrorism in Tunisia, counterterrorism, particularly for urban areas; the National Police Anti-Terrorism Brigade (BAT) and the National Guard Special Unit have the lead for MOI counterterrorism operations
the FAT is a conscript-based, but professional force that has historically remained largely apolitical and stayed out of the country’s economy; following Tunisia’s 1956 independence, FAT officers were legally prohibited from joining political parties, and the military did not intervene to prop up BEN ALI in 2011; nevertheless, President SAIED’s use of military courts to try civilians and placement of military troops outside of the parliament building after he dissolved the Assembly has raised concerns of military politicization
the FAT conducts bilateral and multinational training exercises with a variety of countries, including Algeria and other North African and Middle Eastern countries, France, and the US, as well as NATO; it also participates in UN peacekeeping operations; the Army has 5 combat brigades, including 3 mechanized infantry, a desert patrol, and a special forces brigade, as well as an armored reconnaissance regiment; the Navy is a coastal defense force with a small inventory of offshore patrol ships complemented by a mix of fast attack and patrol craft; the Air Force largely supports the Army’s operations; it has a handful of older US-made fighter aircraft and a few dozen combat helicopters, mostly of French and US origin
Tunisia has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US; MNNA is US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation; while MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments (2022) cooperation (2023)

the FAT is responsible for territorial defense and internal security; its operational areas of focus are countering Islamic Islamist terrorist groups and assisting with securing the border; it is conducting counterterrorism and counterinsurgency operations against militant groups linked to al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and the Islamic State areas of ash-Sham (ISIS) who are fighting a low-intensity insurgency, mostly focus include security operations in the mountainous region regions along the Algerian border with Algeria, particularly the Chaambi Mountains near where smuggling and criminal activity has occurred and militants linked to the city al-Qa'ida and Islamic State of Kasserine; Iraq and ash-Sham terrorist groups have been active; the military has the lead role for security operations in this the area and also routinely conducts has conducted joint operations with Algerian security forces against these groups, as well to counter smuggling and trafficking activities; forces; the FAT in recent years also has increased its role in securing the southern border with Libya against militant activity, smuggling, and trafficking from war-torn Libya; since 2015, Tunisia has constructed a system of berms, trenches, terrorist activity and water-filled moats, complemented by electronic surveillance equipment such as motion detectors, ground surveillance radars, infiltrators, criminal gangs, smuggling, and infrared sensors along the 220-kilometer border with Libya; trafficking; in the remote southern areas of the border with Libya, buffer/exclusion zones have also been established where the military has the lead for counterterrorism efforts; security and counter-terrorism operations; outside of these border areas, the Ministry of Interior (MOI) has the responsibility for counterterrorism, particularly for urban areas; the National Police Anti-Terrorism Brigade and the National Guard Special Unit have the lead for MOI counterterrorism operations
the FAT is a conscript-based, but professional force that has historically remained largely apolitical and stayed out of the country’s economy; following Tunisia’s 1956 independence, FAT officers were legally prohibited from joining political parties, and the military did not intervene to prop up BEN ALI in 2011; nevertheless, President SAIED’s use of military courts to try civilians and placement of military troops outside of the parliament building after he dissolved the Assembly has raised concerns of military politicization
the FAT conducts bilateral and multinational training exercises with a variety of countries, including Algeria and other North African and Middle Eastern countries, France, and the US, as well as NATO; it also participates in UN peacekeeping operations; the Army has 5 combat brigades, including 3 mechanized infantry, a desert patrol, and a special forces brigade, as well as an armored reconnaissance regiment; the Navy is a coastal defense force with a small inventory of offshore patrol ships complemented by a mix of fast attack and patrol craft; the Air Force largely supports the Army’s operations; it has a handful of older US-made fighter aircraft and a few dozen combat helicopters, mostly of French and US origin
Tunisia has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation (2023) (2024)

the FAT is Tunisian Armed Forces (FAT) are responsible for territorial defense and internal security; its operational areas of focus are countering Islamist terrorist groups include counterterrorism and assisting with securing the border; areas of focus include security operations in the mountainous regions along the Algerian border where smuggling and criminal activity has occurred and militants linked to the al-Qa'ida and Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham terrorist groups have been active; the military has the lead for security operations in regions, particularly along the area and has conducted joint operations frontiers with Algerian security forces; the FAT in recent years also has increased its role in securing the southern border with Libya against terrorist activity and infiltrators, criminal gangs, smuggling, and trafficking; in the remote areas of the border with Libya, buffer/exclusion zones have also been established where the military has the lead for security and counter-terrorism operations; outside of these border areas, the Ministry of Interior has responsibility Libya
the FAT conducts bilateral and multinational training exercises with a variety of countries, including Algeria and other North African and Middle Eastern countries, France, and the US, as well as NATO; it also participates in UN peacekeeping operations; Tunisia has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation (2024) (2025)