Top Ten Militaries of the World 2021

Even when there is no situation of war in the world. Every country spends millions of dollars on the military. A strong military is an indication of the muscle power owned by the country. Stronger the military stronger the diplomatic influence on other countries and the better they can protect their homeland. To measure the strength of the military, we use a measurement index called PowerIndex. To conclude the ranking’s we use the nation’s PowerIndex score calculated using over 50 individual factors[1] Smaller the PowerIndex value, the more powerful the nation’s military strenght. Now let’s see the Top Ten Militaries in the world and unfold their potential one by one.

1. United States of America

With PowerIndex of 0.0718 no doubt the United States is by far has the most powerful military in the world. It has an estimated total of 2.245M military personnel out of which 1.4M are active and 845,500 reserve personnel.

It homes 1956 fighters, 945 transports, 625 tanker fleets and 904 attack helicopters which are always ready for Air battles. On the land, it houses 6100 tanks, 40000 armoured vehicles, 1365 rocket projectors and many other powerful weapons. It also has 11 aircraft carriers, 10 helicopter carriers, 68 submarines to tackle enemies in oceans. USA spends approximately 740.5M dollars annually for defence purposes.

2. Russia

With PowerIndex of 0.0791, Russia stands second in the global military ranking. It has an estimated 3.569M military personnel out of which 1.014M are active and 2M are reserve personnel.

Russia has 789 fighters, 429 transports, 19 tanker fleets and 538 attack helicopters. On land, they have 13000 tanks (highest in the world), 27100 armoured vehicles, 3860 rocket projectors and 6540 self-propelled artillery. Enemies of Russia should keep in mind that this country has really strong land weapons. In the ocean, it has 1 aircraft carrier, 15 destroyers and 64 submarines that guard the coastal regions of Russia. It spends 42.129M USD annually for defence purposes.

3. China

China secures 3rd position in the global military ranking with PowerIndex of 0.0854. It has an estimated 3.355M total military personnel of which 2.185M are active and 510000 are reversed.

If we look at Airpower of China it has 1200 fighters, 264 transports, 3 tanker fleets and 327 attack helicopters. On land, China has 3205 tanks, 35000 armoured vehicles, 2250 rocket projectors and 1970 self-propelled artillery. For oceans, it has 2 aircraft carriers, 50 destroyers and 79 submarines (highest in the world). 178.2M USD is annually spent on defence by china.

4. India

India has a PowerIndex of 0.1207 and stands at 4th place in the global military ranking. It has total military personnel of 5,127,000 out of which 1,445,000 are active and 1,155,000 reserve personnel. India has 2nd most active military personnel in the world.

India houses 542 fighters, 251 transports, 6 tanker fleets and 37 attack helicopters to fight enemies from the air. On land, it has 4730 tanks, 10000 armoured vehicles, 100 self-propelled artillery, 4040 towed artillery (second highest in the world) and 374 rocket projectors. On oceans, it has 1 aircraft carrier, 10 destroyers, 17 submarines and 139 patrol vessels. India annually spends 73,650,000,000 USD on defence.

5. Japan

Japan has PowerIndex of 0.1599 and stands 5th rank in global military ranking. It has an estimated total military personnel of 319000 out of which 250000 are active personnel and 55000 are reserve personnel.

It has 256 fighters, 61 transports, 6 tanker fleets, and 119 attack helicopters to fight enemies in the air. It has 5500 armoured vehicles, 214 self-propelled artillery, 480 towed artillery and 99 rocket projectors on land. It has 4 helicopter carriers, 37 destroyers, 20 submarines, and 21 mine warfares to fight enemies in the sea as a naval power. Japan spends 51,700,000,000 USD annually on defence.

6. South Korea

With PowerIndex of 0.1612, South Korea is the 6th strongest military in the world. It has an estimated military personnel of 6,710,000 of which 600,000 are active and 3,100,000 are reserve personnel.

It has 402 fighters, 41 transports, 4 tanker fleets, 112 attack helicopters as airpower. For land forces, it has 2600 tanks, 3040 self-propelled artillery, 3854 towed artillery, 574 rocket projectors. In naval forces, it owns 1 helicopter carrier, 12 destroyers, 22 submarines, 11 mine warfare. Annually it spends 48,000,000,000 USD on military purposes.

7. France

France is the 7th strongest military in the world with a PowerIndex of 0.1681. It has an estimated total military personnel of 450,000, Active are 270,000 and Reserve 35,000.

Its airpower consists of 269 fighters, 118 transports, 23 tanker fleets, 69 attack helicopters. In its land forces, it has 406 tanks, 6420 armoured vehicles, 109 self-propelled artillery, 12 towed artillery and 13 rocket projectors. Its naval forces have 1 aircraft carrier, 3 helicopter carriers, 11 destroyers, 10 submarines, 17 mine warfare. It annually spends 47,700,000,000 USD for its military.

8. United Kingdom

The United Kingdom has a PowerIndex rating of 0.1997 with total military personnel of 275,000 of which 195000 are active and 80000 are reserve.

Its airpower consists of 119 fighters, 45 transports, 9 tanker fleets and 38 attack helicopters. In its land forces, it has 109 tanks, 5500 armoured vehicles, 89 self-propelled artillery, 126 towed artillery and 35 rocket projectors. The naval forces consist of 2 aircraft carriers, 6 destroyers, 11 submarines and 13 mine warfare. Its annual defence budget is 56,042,000,000 USD.

9. Brazil

Brazil has a PowerIndex of 0.2026 and stands 9th on the global military ranking. It has an estimated total military personnel of 2074500 out of which 334500 are active and 1340000 are reserve.

It has 43 fighters, 77 dedicated attacks, 124 transports, 40 special mission, 2 tanker fleet and 12 attack helicopters makes its airpower. On land forces, it has 439 tanks, 2000 armoured vehicles, 136 self-propelled artillery, 546 towed artillery, 60 rocket projectors and in navy, it has 1 helicopter carrier, 6 submarines and 5 mine warfare. It spends 29,300,000,000 USD annually for its defences forces.

10. Pakistan

Pakistan with a PowerIndex of 0.2073 stands last in the global top ten military rankings. It has total military personnel of 1,704,000 of which 654,000 are active and 550,000  are reserve.

It has 357 fighters, 90 dedicated attacks, 48 transports, 4 tanker fleet and 53 attack helicopters as their airpower. On land, they have 2680 tanks, 9635 armoured vehicles, 429 self-propelled artillery, 1690 towed artillery and 330 rocket projectors. In naval forces, it has 9 submarines and 3 mine warfare. It spends 12,275,000,000  USD for its military annually.

Author: Sujaykumar Kulkarni