Countries with no army
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Countries with No Army — Daily trivia Wednesday, May 20, 2026: questions and answers
All 10 questions with answers and explanations. Play this daily
Q 01Which microstate is guarded by the Pontifical Swiss Guard rather than a conventional army?
- AAndorra
- BVatican City
- CLiechtenstein
- DMonaco
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Vatican City
Vatican City leaves the pope's protection to the Pontifical Swiss Guard, founded in 1506 and nicknamed the world's smallest army, while Italy informally protects the state itself.
Q 02Which Central American nation abolished its army after a civil war and wrote the ban into its constitution?
- ABelize
- BHonduras
- CCosta Rica
- DGuatemala
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Costa Rica
Article 12 of Costa Rica's 1949 constitution has banned a standing army since the 1948 civil war, and the country still marks a Military Abolition Day.
Q 03Which ancient microstate republic, completely surrounded by Italy, leaves its national defence to Italy's armed forces?
- AAndorra
- BSan Marino
- CMalta
- DMonaco
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San Marino
San Marino claims to be the world's oldest republic, founded in AD 301; its tiny forces include a ceremonial Crossbow Corps, and Italy's armed forces handle its defence.
Q 04Which country abolished its army after the U.S. invasion that toppled Manuel Noriega?
- AHonduras
- BPanama
- CEl Salvador
- DNicaragua
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Panama
Panama's Defense Forces were dismantled after the December 1989 invasion, and a 1994 constitutional change bars a standing army; its police, border and air-sea services keep light military capabilities.
Q 05Which founding member of NATO joined on condition that it would never be expected to raise a standing army?
- ADenmark
- BNorway
- CIceland
- DFinland
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Iceland
Iceland has had no standing army since 1869, relying on its Coast Guard and police, and a 1951 agreement obliges the United States to defend it when needed.
Q 06Which country handles the defence of the tiny Pacific republic of Nauru under an informal agreement?
- AAustralia
- BJapan
- CUnited States
- DNew Zealand
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Australia
Nauru, the third-smallest country in the world, keeps only a civilian-controlled police force; Australia handles its defence under an informal understanding between the two governments.
Q 07What kind of body handles security for Mauritius, which has had no standing army since independence?
- AA national guard
- BA ceremonial guard
- CA foreign legion
- DA paramilitary police force
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A paramilitary police force
Mauritius has no standing army and instead maintains a paramilitary police force, known as the Special Mobile Force (SMF), for its security needs.
Q 08Grenada's army executed which prime minister days before the US-led invasion that ended it?
- ABishop
- BGairy
- CBlaize
- DMitchell
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Bishop
Grenada's People's Revolutionary Army had executed Maurice Bishop and seized power; after the October 1983 invasion it was disbanded, and Grenada has had no standing army since.
Q 09Which Caribbean island nation disbanded its defence force after two violent coup attempts?
- ADominica
- BAntigua and Barbuda
- CBarbados
- DSaint Lucia
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Dominica
Dominica disbanded its defence force in 1981 after two coup attempts against Eugenia Charles, the Caribbean's first female prime minister; the Regional Security System now handles its defence.
Q 10Which country, legend says, sent 80 men to the Austro-Prussian War and brought 81 home?
- ALiechtenstein
- BLuxembourg
- CAndorra
- DMonaco
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Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein's soldiers guarded an Alpine pass against Garibaldi's Italians; the extra man may have been an Austrian liaison officer or an Italian farmer, and the army was disbanded in 1868.
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