The Royal Military Police Close Protection Unit (RMP CPU) is a unit within the British Army's Royal Military Police (RMP) that has designated responsibility for protecting senior military and government personnel when deployed overseas. The unit itself does not supply the majority of the manpower for such taskings, but trains individuals from the RMP, Royal Navy Police, RAF Police and Royal Marines Police Troop for the role, as well as taking on urgent and short-notice taskings. [1] [2]
The CPU was formed in the late 1970s, after a number of RMP bodyguards attended the Special Air Service bodyguard course at Hereford, and brought the skills back to an RMP-specific course, the first of which ran in 1976. Three years later, the course and unit moved to Longmoor Camp where it remains. [3]
The CPU is a sub-unit within the RMP's Specialist Operations Regiment, commanded by a major. It is considerably smaller than most RMP companies, however, with just a small staff of experienced CP operatives who act as instructors or are held ready to deploy on short-notice tasks.
Close protection operatives trained by CPU protect high-ranking British army officers in high-threat environments, most notably during the Iraq war and Afghanistan war, and ensuring counter-insurgency and peacekeeping operations. [4] They also protect British ambassadors and other high-ranking Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials in locations where the threat level demands it. [5] [6]
The CPU offers a range of training courses. These include the eight-week Close Protection Course that qualifies service police men and women to be CP operatives, a further eight-week pre-deployment training course carried out before teams deploy overseas, and specialist driving courses for locally employed civilian drivers. [3]
The CPU trains and deploys with a range of specialist weapons not used by the majority of the British army. These include the Diemaco C8. In the past the SIG Sauer P226 was utilised; however, this has been replaced with the Glock 19. The H&K MP5K is still utilised. The H&K 417 is used for longer distance engagments and deemed necessary on deployments by the Team Leader & 2iC. In the future the Close Protection Unit is exploring the purchase of the SIG Sauer MCX. [6] [7]
Joint Task Force 2 is Canada's Tier 1 special operations force mandated with protecting Canadian national interests and combating terrorism threats both domestic and abroad. JTF 2 serves under the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command of the Canadian Armed Forces and is typically compared to American Delta Force and SEAL Team Six, the British Special Air Service and Special Boat Service, the Australian Special Air Service Regiment and 2nd Commando Regiment, and the New Zealand Special Air Service. Most information concerning JTF 2 is classified and is not usually commented on by the Canadian Armed Forces or the Canadian government.
The 1st New Zealand Special Air Service Regiment, abbreviated as 1 NZSAS Regt, is the special forces unit of the New Zealand Army, closely modelled on the British Special Air Service (SAS). It was formed on 7 July 1955. It traces its origins to the Second World War and the famous Long Range Desert Group that New Zealanders served with.
Directorate "V" of the FSB Special Purpose Center, often referred to as Spetsgruppa "V"Vympel, but also known as KGB Directorate "V", Vega Group, is one of the two tier one spetsnaz units of the FSB under the command of the FSB.
The Royal Military Police (RMP) is the corps of the British Army responsible for the policing of army service personnel, and for providing a military police presence both in the UK and while service personnel are deployed overseas on operations and exercises. Members of the RMP are often known as 'Redcaps' because of the scarlet covers on their peaked caps and scarlet coloured berets.
Special Investigation Branch (SIB) was the name given to the detective branches of all three British military police arms: the Royal Navy Police, Royal Military Police and Royal Air Force Police. It was most closely associated with the Royal Military Police, which had the largest SIB. SIB investigators usually operated in plain clothes, although they did wear uniforms when serving overseas. Members were usually senior non-commissioned officers (sergeants or petty officers or above) or commissioned officers, although the Royal Air Force SIB was open to corporals and Acting Corporals. In December 2022, the new tri-service Defence Serious Crime Unit replaced all three service SIBs, which were disbanded.
The Army Ranger Wing (ARW) is the special operations force of the Irish Defence Forces, the military of Ireland. In late 2023, it was reported that the unit was to be renamed the Ireland Special Operations Force (IRL-SOF). It is a branch of the Irish Army, it also selects personnel from the Naval Service and Air Corps. It serves at the behest of the Defence Forces and Government of Ireland, operating internally and overseas, and reports directly to the Chief of Staff. The ARW was established in 1980 with the primary role of counter terrorism and evolved to both special operations and counter-terrorism roles from 2000 after the end of conflict in Northern Ireland. The unit is based in the Curragh Camp, County Kildare. The 2015 White Paper on Defence announced that the strength of the ARW would be considerably increased due to operational requirements at home and overseas.
The Royal Air Force Police (RAFP) is the service police branch of the Royal Air Force, headed by the provost marshal of the Royal Air Force. Its headquarters are at RAF Honington and it deploys throughout the world to support RAF and UK defence missions.
The United States Air Force Security Forces (SF) are the ground combat force and military police service of the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force. The USAF Security Forces were formerly known as Military Police (MP), Air Police (AP), and Security Police (SP) at various points in their history. Due to its significant ground combat mission, Security Forces are sometimes regarded as Air Force infantry. They were formed on the premise of being the Air Force's "Marine Corps", in that they would provide security for the Air Force similar to how the Marines provide security for the Navy.
The Tactical Police Squadron (TPS) is a group of around 150 regular and 50 reservist (RAuxAF) Royal Air Force Police with its headquarters at RAF Honington in Suffolk, England. The reservists comprise No 3 Police Squadron.
The Special Forces Support Group (SFSG) is a special forces unit of the British Armed Forces. The SFSG was formed officially on 3 April 2006 to provide support to the Special Air Service, the Special Boat Service and the Special Reconnaissance Regiment on operations. It is a tri-service unit, composed of the 1st Battalion, Parachute Regiment,, a company of Royal Marine Commandos, and a flight (platoon) from the Royal Air Force Regiment.
Pasukan Gerakan Khas is a special operations command of the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP). The PGK has two distinct sub-units; the Special Actions Unit and the 69 Commando Battalion.
RNZAF Security Forces is the Royal New Zealand Air Force unit responsible for base security, ground defence, weapons training, and Air Transport Security on RNZAF aircraft. RNZAF Security Forces operates under the RNZAF Operations Squadron.
The JMF Elite Forces is the only tier one special forces unit in Malaysia placed under the responsibility of the Royal Johor Military Force (JMF) with amphibious reconnaissance, black operation, counterterrorism and hostage rescue crisis management, naval boarding, respond quickly in emergency situations, support search and rescue in hazardous environments, special warfare in any incidents involving the state of Johor, and the mandate of providing security and protection to the Royal Family of Johor.
The 1st Military Working Dog Regiment, Royal Army Veterinary Corps is a British Army working dog unit. It is responsible for providing trained dogs and handlers to support British Armed Forces on operations in the UK and overseas.The regiment holds the Army’s only deployable MWD and veterinary capability.
The Swedish Special Operations Task Group, is a special forces unit within the Swedish Armed Forces which has been active since 2011. The unit is headquartered at Karlsborg Fortress in Karlsborg, Västra Götaland County.
The history of army policing in Great Britain dates back to the Middle Ages. However, the predecessor units to the modern Royal Military Police were only formed in the 1870s and 1880s, merging in 1926 and being granted their 'Royal' prefix in 1946.
The 69 Commando ; also known as Very Able Troopers 69 is an elite multi-tasking special forces unit of the Royal Malaysia Police. The VAT 69 is based at Ulu Kinta, Perak and together with Special Actions Unit, they are part of Pasukan Gerakan Khas. The mission of 69 Commando is to conduct high-risk tasks such as counter-terrorism, hostage rescue, intelligence gathering and counter-insurgency within the borders of Malaysia.
The Special Actions Unit, commonly known as and abbreviated to UTK, is a tactical unit of the Royal Malaysia Police (RMP). The unit is headquartered at the RMP buildings in Bukit Aman, Kuala Lumpur. Together with the 69 Commando, they form the Pasukan Gerakan Khas.
The Special Forces and Elite Forces include both a specially and higher trained unit and a small percentage of personnel from a specific Malaysian military branch, law enforcement or government agency. In Malaysia, the term 'Special Forces' is widely used by uniformed services for special forces, special operations forces and 'special' trained units while 'Elite Forces' for units that more trained and capable combat. Regular personnel must undertake specialized and higher training to be able to join the units of the 'Special and Elite Forces'. These "Special Elite Forces" are denoted by different beret colours, shoulder tabs, unit patches, skill badges and uniforms.
The Missions Abroad and Special Operations is a specialized unit within the German Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). The ASE is composed of specially selected and trained BKA personnel that typically operate in high-threat environments.