All countries of the world are concerned about their security, pursuing an appropriate foreign policy and developing their armed forces. Comparing the military power of countries is one of the most interesting security issues. To the delight of experts, politicians and the interested public, ratings of the armies of different countries are regularly published, allowing them to compare their military power. An updated Global Firepower rating was published in early April.
The Global Firepower ranking is one of the most renowned and respected studies in the world. The authors of this study carefully study various aspects of the world's armies and deliver their verdict. The ranking of countries by military power is compiled using the "Power Index" (Power Index or PwrIndex). When analyzing the defense potential of each country, fifty different parameters are taken into account, summarized in one formula. The result of the calculations is a number that fairly fairly reflects the potential of a particular country. As the country's military power grows, its PwrIndex shrinks and tends to zero. Thus, the smaller the resulting index of a particular state, the more military power it has.
In the system for calculating the index of military power, 50 different parameters are used, reflecting the state of the economy, industry and directly the armed forces. In addition, when calculating the index, a system of bonus and penalty coefficients is applied. Also, the authors of the Global Firepower rating take into account some of the features of states that can seriously affect the index. So, when calculating, the following rules apply:
- the country's index does not include nuclear weapons;
- when calculating, the geographical features of the states are taken into account;
- not only the quantitative aspects of the armed forces are taken into account;
- production and consumption of some basic resources are taken into account;
- landlocked countries are not fined for lack of naval forces;
- the limited capabilities of the Navy are the reason for the fine;
- the political course of the country and other similar factors are not taken into account.
This time, the authors of the Global Firepower rating studied the armed forces of 126 countries. A year ago, there were only 106 positions in the ranking. The updated rating has other differences from last year's version. For various reasons, the PwrIndex of most countries has decreased, which indicates a slight increase in their military power. It is noteworthy that the growth of defense potential is found both at the top of the table and at its bottom lines.
The five leaders have not changed over the year. The power indices of the countries decreased, thanks to which the most militarily powerful states remained in their places. The United States is still the world leader, Russia is in second place, and China closes the top three. Also, India and Great Britain were included in the top five owners of the most powerful armies.
In the top ten, there were also no major changes. Places from six to ten were taken by France, South Korea, Germany, Japan and Turkey. It is noteworthy that Japan was able to move up one line in a year. At the same time, its index decreased from 0, 5586 to 0, 3838. Thus, through the implementation of some projects, the Land of the Rising Sun has significantly increased its defense potential in just a year.
Similar trends are observed throughout the table. For example, countries with a score of 0, 5858 (last year's Japan index) are now in 16-17 places. Last year, Tanzania ranked last 106th with an index of 4, 3423. In 2015, this African state was ranked 120th with PwrIndex 3, 5526. Somalia was recognized as the militarily weakest state of the surveyed, with a score of 5, 7116. For comparison, Mozambique is in the penultimate 125th place with an index of 3, 8105.
The summary table of countries is accompanied by detailed information about the military power and other parameters taken into account when determining the index. Consider the top five leaders and find out what helped them become the most powerful states in the world.
1. USA
As before, the first place remained with the United States. In the 2015 ranking, this state received an estimate of 0, 1661. For comparison, a year ago, the US military power was estimated at 0, 2208. Thus, the state's defense potential has grown significantly.
When calculating the index, the following data were taken into account. The population of the United States is 320, 202 million people. If necessary, the country will be able to call for military service 145, 2 million people, of which 120 million are between the ages of 17 and 45. Every year the number of human resources fit for military service is increasing by 4.217 million people. The US armed forces currently serve 1.4 million people. The reserve is 1, 1 million people.
As a world leader, the United States has the appropriate forces to operate on land. The US Army has 8848 tanks, 41,062 armored combat vehicles, 1,934 self-propelled artillery mounts, 1,299 towed guns and 1,331 MLRS.
The Pentagon has a total of 13,892 aircraft and helicopters of various types. This number includes 2,207 fighters and interceptors, 2,797 strike aircraft (hereinafter, some fighter-bombers can be classified into two categories: fighters and strike aircraft), 5366 transport aircraft and 2,809 training aircraft. In addition, the United States has 6196 helicopters for various purposes and 920 attack rotorcraft.
The total number of ships, submarines and boats of the naval forces and other structures is 473 units. The United States has 20 aircraft carriers (aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships with a full flight deck), 10 frigates, 62 destroyers, 72 submarines, 13 coastal ships and 11 minesweepers. The column "corvettes" is zero. In addition, the list (both here and elsewhere) does not include some other ships, boats and vessels.
In addition to the various characteristics of the armed forces, various resources are taken into account when calculating the Power Index. Thus, the United States produces 7.441 million barrels of oil per day. The daily consumption of "black gold" is 19 million barrels. Proved oil reserves are 20.68 billion barrels.
There are 155.4 million workers in the United States. The logistics involved 393 merchant ships, 24 large ports, 6, 586 million km of roads, 224,792 km of railways and 13, 5 thousand operating airfields.
In 2015, the US military budget was $ 577.1 billion. Public debt - $ 15.68 trillion. Like a year ago, gold and foreign exchange reserves are estimated at $ 150.2 billion. The purchasing power parity is $ 16.72 billion.
When analyzing the defensive potential, the authors of the Global Firepower Index take into account the geographical features of the countries. For obvious reasons, such parameters of the United States have not changed over the past year. The area of the country is 9.827 million square meters. km, the length of the coastline is 19,924 km. The land borders account for 12 thousand km. The total length of the waterways exceeds 41 thousand km.
2. Russia
Russia is again in second place with a score of 0, 1865. Last year, Russia's PwrIndex was set at 0, 2355. Thus, the Russian defense potential continues to grow, which is a testament to the success of the current programs to modernize the armed forces.
The total population of Russia is estimated at 142.5 million people. 69.1 million can serve. 46, 812 million people are fit for military service. Each year, the draft age reaches 1.354 million people. Currently, 766,055 people are serving in the armed forces. Another 2.485 million are in the reserve.
The numerical indicators of the ground services of the Russian armed forces are one of the reasons for its being on the second line of the rating. The Russian army has 15398 tanks, 31,298 armored vehicles of other classes, 5972 self-propelled artillery mounts, 4625 towed guns and 3793 MLRS.
The total number of aircraft in the armed forces is 3429 units. The units have 769 fighters and interceptors, 1,305 attack and 1,083 transport aircraft. 346 training aircraft are used to train pilots. In addition, there are 462 attack helicopters and 1,120 multipurpose helicopters.
The Russian Navy has 352 pieces of equipment. These are 1 aircraft carrier, 4 frigates, 12 destroyers, 74 corvettes, 55 submarines, 65 coastal zone ships and 34 minesweepers. It should be noted that the foreign classification of ships and vessels of the naval forces differs markedly from the Russian one, which leads to some disagreements.
According to the compilers of the Global Firepower rating, Russia is currently producing 10.58 million barrels of oil per day. Own consumption is 3.2 million barrels per day. Proved reserves are 80 billion barrels.
The labor resources of Russia are estimated at 75, 29 million people. 1,143 merchant ships, 7 large ports, 982 thousand km of roads and 87,157 km of railways are used in cargo transportation. There are 1218 airfields in operation.
Russia's defense budget in 2015 amounted to $ 60.4 billion (the rate at which the calculations were made is not specified). Public debt - $ 714.2 billion. Gold and foreign exchange reserves are estimated at $ 515.6 billion, purchasing power parity - $ 2.553 trillion.
The supplementary materials to the ratings of 2014 and 2015 provide the same data on the geographic features of Russia. The total area of the state is 17,098 million square meters. km, the length of the coastline is 37653 km. The land borders have a total length of 22407 km. There are waterways with a length of 102 thousand km.
3. China
The third line of the rating is again occupied by the People's Republic of China. This time, its Power Index is 0.2315. In the 2014 ranking, China received a score of 0.2594. The decrease in the Power Index indicates the success of the Chinese armed forces and defense industry in increasing the country's defense potential. Currently, China is striving to become the leading country in the Asia-Pacific region, which, among other things, results in the creation and improvement of powerful armed forces.
China is home to 1.356 billion people. The army, with certain reservations, can serve 749, 61 million people. Directly fit for service 618, 588 million people. Each year the number of potential recruits grows by 19.538 million. At the moment, 2.333 million people are serving in the People's Liberation Army of China. There are 2.3 million reservists.
The situation with the PLA ground equipment is as follows. The army has 9,150 tanks, 4,788 other types of armored vehicles, 1,710 self-propelled artillery mounts, 6,246 towed guns and 1,770 MLRS.
In terms of the total number of aviation equipment, China is inferior to the owners of the first and second places. The Air Force and other branches of the PRC armed forces have only 2,860 aircraft of all types. These are 1,066 fighters and interceptors, 1,311 strike aircraft, 876 military transport aircraft and 352 training aircraft. The helicopter fleet is represented by 196 attack vehicles and 908 pieces of equipment for other purposes.
The total number of ships, boats and submarines is 673 units. The naval forces, coast guard and other structures operate 1 aircraft carrier, 47 frigates, 25 destroyers, 23 corvettes, 67 submarines, 11 coastal zone ships and 6 minesweepers.
China has its own fields, which give it 4.372 million barrels of oil per day. At the same time, its own extractive industry cannot meet all the needs of the industry, which consumes 9.5 million barrels daily. Explored and proven reserves in the amount of 17.3 billion barrels.
The PRC has the largest labor resources - 797.6 million people. China's merchant fleet numbers 2030 ships, 15 major ports and terminals are used. 3.86 million km of roads and 86 thousand km of railways have been laid across the country. Aviation uses 507 airports.
Most of the information about the Chinese defense is classified, but the authors of the Global Firepower study were able to roughly estimate the financial performance of the PLA. The military budget is estimated at US $ 145 billion. China's national debt is $ 863.2 billion. The country's gold and foreign exchange reserves reach $ 3.821 trillion. The purchasing power parity is 13.39 trillion.
The geography of China has not changed for many years. The total area of the country is 9, 597 million square meters. km. The length of the coastline is 14.5 thousand km. The land border is 22457 km. There are waterways with a total length of 110 thousand km.
4. India
The second most populous state again occupies the fourth line of the Global Firepower rating, which is facilitated by the special attention of the authorities paid to the development of the armed forces. Over the past several years, India has been actively updating its army, thanks to which it has consistently occupied the first lines of various ratings. This time, India received a score of 0, 2695. For comparison, the index for 2014 was 0, 3872.
India is home to 1.236 billion people, of which 615.2 million can serve in the army. 489, 57 million people are fit for service. The draft age reaches 22, 897 million people annually. At the same time, 1.325 million people currently serve in the armed forces, with a reserve of 2.143 million.
The Indian Armed Forces have a fairly large fleet of various ground military equipment and weapons. It is armed with 6464 tanks, 6704 other types of armored vehicles, 290 self-propelled artillery mounts, 7414 towed guns, as well as 292 multiple launch rocket systems.
The Indian Armed Forces have 1905 aircraft and helicopters of various types. These are 629 fighters and interceptors, 761 strike aircraft, 667 military transport and 263 training vehicles. In addition, the Indian military uses 20 attack helicopters and 584 other rotorcraft.
The naval forces and other branches of the armed forces have a total of 202 units of ships, submarines, etc. The Indian Navy is based on 2 aircraft carriers, 15 frigates, 9 destroyers, 25 corvettes and 15 submarines. In addition, there are 46 coastal ships and 7 minesweepers.
India has its own oil fields, but they cannot provide the country with the required amount of raw materials. Only 897.5 thousand barrels are produced daily, while 3.3 million barrels are consumed. The explored and proven oil reserves are also relatively small - only 5.476 billion barrels.
According to the compilers of the Global Firepower rating, the working-age population of India is 487, 3 million people. The country's merchant fleet uses 340 vessels of various types and 7 major major ports. India has a developed road network with a total length of 3.32 million km. The total length of railways is 63,974 km. There are 346 airfields in operation.
In 2015, India allocated $ 38 billion for defense needs. The national debt of the country is estimated at $ 412.2 billion. The total volume of gold and foreign exchange reserves reaches $ 295 billion. The purchasing power parity is $ 4.99 trillion.
India is one of the largest countries in the world, with an area of about 3.287 million square meters. km. The total length of the coastline is 7 thousand km. The land border is 13888 km. Waterways - 14.5 thousand km.
5. United Kingdom
The top five in the Global Firepower rating is occupied by Great Britain with a power index of 0, 2743. A year earlier, the British military earned a score of 0, 3923. As in the case of other leaders in the rating, Great Britain maintains its position, but at the same time gradually increases its defense potential.
Of the population of 63, 743 million people, 29, 164 million can serve in the army. 24,035 million people are fit for service. Each year the minimum age for military service reaches 749.48 thousand people. The British Armed Forces now serve only 149,980 people. The reserve is 182 thousand people.
Despite its high position in the ranking, Great Britain cannot boast of a large number of weapons and military equipment. The ground forces have 407 tanks, 5948 armored vehicles, 89 self-propelled artillery mounts, 138 towed guns and 42 MLRS.
The air force and naval aviation also do not differ in large numbers: there are only 936 aircraft of all types in service. Fighter aviation is represented by 89 aircraft, strike aircraft - 160. Transport missions are performed by 365 aircraft, flight personnel are trained with the help of 343 training aircraft. In addition, there are 65 attack and 402 multipurpose helicopters.
The compilers of the Global Firepower rating counted 66 ships, boats and submarines in the UK. This is 1 aircraft carrier, 13 frigates, 10 submarines, 15 minesweepers and 10 ships intended for operations in the coastal zone. There are no corvettes in the British Navy.
The UK's extractive industry provides most of the country's oil needs. 1.1 million barrels are produced every day with a consumption of 1.217 million barrels. Explored reserves amount to 3.22 billion barrels.
The British economy employs 30, 15 million workers. 14 large ports and 504 merchant ships are used for sea transportation. There are motor roads with a total length of 394,428 km. The total length of railways is 16454 km. Aviation has 460 airfields.
Despite its relatively small size and population, the UK has a relatively strong economy, allowing for large defense spending. The military budget for this year is $ 51.5 billion. At the same time, the national debt of the country is 9, 577 trillion dollars, and gold and foreign exchange reserves are equivalent to 87, 48 billion dollars. Purchasing power parity - $ 2.387 trillion.
The area of insular Great Britain is only 243,610 sq. km. The islands have a coastline with a total length of 12,429 km. The land border with Ireland is only 443 km long. Inland waterways - 3200 km.
***
Over the year, the top ten of the Global Firepower rating has remained almost unchanged. Almost all the countries leading in terms of combat power remained in their places. At the same time, however, their assessments changed noticeably. In just a year, the PwrIndex of many countries has changed downward, which indicates an increase in defense capability and military potential. In most cases, the improvement in estimates occurred simultaneously, which is why the top ten remained almost unchanged, while the order of countries remained largely the same.
It should be noted that at present no country in the world can be called an unconditional leader in all the parameters under consideration. Thus, the United States has the largest military budget and operates the largest aircraft fleet. At the same time, China is leading in those areas where the number of people and personnel is of decisive importance. Finally, Russia has the largest number of tanks and other armored vehicles.
For this reason, the compilers of the Global Firepower rating assess the potential of countries at once according to fifty different parameters, which, using special calculation methods, turn into a decimal fraction. Taking into account additional comparison rules (refusal to take into account nuclear weapons, bonuses and fines for various features of the armed forces, etc.), such a system can indeed give a fairly objective picture.
Naturally, comparing the armed forces of different countries by a set of parameters has some disadvantages that can affect objectivity. Nevertheless, the Global Firepower rating is currently one of the most famous and authoritative studies in this area. In addition, it should be noted that the regular first places in Russia are a good reason for joy and pride in our country.
