The
Swiss Army (German:
Schweizer Armee, French:
Armée suisse, Italian:
Esercito svizzero, Romanisch:
Armada svizra) operates on land, in the air, and in international waters. Under the country's militia system,
professional soldiers constitute about 5 percent of the military and the rest are conscripts or volunteers aged 19 to 34 (in some cases up to 50). Because of
Switzerland's long history of
neutrality, the army does not take part in armed conflicts in other countries, but it does participate in
international peacekeeping missions. Switzerland is part of the NATO
Partnership for Peace programme.