cadre

nouns

a small unit serving as part of or as the nucleus of a larger political movement
cadre, cell
a nucleus of military personnel capable of expansion
cadre
is a member of
the military forces of a nation
"their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker"
armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine
is a type of (narrower)
a small group of indispensable persons or things
"five periodicals make up the core of their publishing program"
core, core group, nucleus