The Soviet Armed Forces are the military services of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The core of the armed forces consists of six service branches: Soviet Ground Forces, Soviet Aerospace Force, Soviet Airborne Forces, Soviet Strategic Rocket Forces, the Soviet Navy, and Soviet Special Operations Forces. The service branches are supplemented by various support organizations, to include a national paramilitary force which operate as force multipliers for the Army such as the Internal Troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The existence of, authority over, and tasks of the armed forces are determined in the 1992 Union-Treaty Constitution. Under the Constitution, the President functions as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

The military ranks of the Union are unique to Russian military structures and the highest-ranking officer in the federal military is the Chief of the General Staff of the Soviet Union, who is a four-star officer.

The Soviet Armed Forces exist by declaration in the constitution of the USSR.

Article 7 of the Constitution stipulates the existence of a well-armed and regulated military for the defense of the Soviet Union. The armed forces is to be Headed by the President and is funded by the Supreme Soviet and regulated by the Committee on Defense and Security. The purpose of the Armed Forces is ..

(1) to defend the USSR and its interests within the Eurasian region and its periphery; and (2) to protect and advance the security of the declared USSR while adhering to the international rule of law. This means that the role and responsibility of the military in regional and hemispheric stability and peacekeeping is constitutionally determined. The same article of the constitution determines that supreme command of the military resides with the President. This has been the case since the new constitution was formed in 1992.

As of 1993, the Soviet Armed Forces is comprised of 1,000,000 active duty personnel, 1,500,000 reserve personnel with nearly 4.6 million fit for military service. Military training, not conscription, within the Soviet Union is mandatory for 2 years to ensure the Soviet society has received extensive training and military awareness, however, the Armed Forces as of 1993 is manned by volunteer men and women after the two years to maintain high degree of professionalization from across the Union.

The Federal Arab Armed Forces maintains a budget equal to ~3% of the Union's GDP.