The specialized website Global Firepower has published a ranking of the most powerful armies in the world in 2019. The list includes 137 countries, using over 55 different factors to determine the PowerIndex for each country.
Read also: Ranking of armies of the world 2020.
However, the full list is not only based on the total number of weapons available for a given country, it focuses on the variety of weapons within the total, which provides the best balance of firepower available.
In addition, the presence of nuclear weapons is not directly recognized (but receives an indirect bonus point), but geographic factors, material and technical base, natural resources and local industry directly affect the place in the ranking.
10. Germany
The ranking of the armies of the world in 2019 is opened by the German armed forces, numbering 178 thousand people. At the same time, the country's defense budget is $ 49.1 billion, which is more than Russia spends with its million-strong army.
However, the state of the military equipment of the Bundeswehr causes concern in the German Defense Ministry. Only a third of the new aircraft, armored vehicles and other equipment supplied to the German army can be considered serviceable. This is reported by the Stuttgarter Nachrichten edition, referring to the State Secretary of the German Ministry of Defense Peter Tauber.
9.Turkey
With 355,000 active troops and a defense budget of $ 8.6 billion, Turkey is rightfully considered one of the strongest armies in the world. It is the second most powerful NATO army after the United States.
An interesting fact: in peacetime, you can officially pay off from serving in the Turkish army. This service costs 18 thousand lira, and brings to the country's budget from 25 to 30 million dollars annually. This money goes to various military needs, for example, to pay the families of the dead soldiers.
8.UK
Whether because of Brexit, or for other reasons, but Britain's military spending fell this year to $ 47.5 billion, compared with $ 50 billion in 2018. The British army currently has 150,000 troops, making it the smallest on this list.
Despite being in the top 10 most powerful armies of 2019, Britain is 20 years out of date. This is the opinion of retired general Richard Barrons, quoted by The Telegraph.
7. South Korea
Seoul and Washington cooperate closely militarily. In early March, they conducted a large-scale military headquarters exercise called Dongmen, and in May, the country's first-ever civil-military exercise will take place, which will combine the South Korean Armed Forces Taegeuk maneuvers and part of the joint US military exercises Ulchi Freedom Guardian.
Thus, the South Korean government wants to assess the army's ability to independently repel armed attacks. The second goal of the exercise is to practice actions in emergency situations (terrorist attacks, natural disasters, etc.).
The South Korean army has 625,000 troops and a defense budget of $ 38.3 billion.
6. Japan
Formally, the Japanese armed forces are called "self-defense forces", which includes the naval, ground and air forces.
Despite its doctrine of non-aggression, Japan views China and North Korea as major threats and is constantly upgrading its military capabilities. The Japanese army has 247,000 troops, and the country's defense budget is $ 47 billion.
5. France
The French government program provides for significant military spending in 2019-2025. They will reach almost 300 billion euros.
In 2019, the Fifth Republic increased its defense spending to $ 40.5 billion, a 5% increase over 2018. The main area that will receive the most funds is cyber defense.
From 2005 to 2015, the French army was reduced by 60 thousand people, but the attacks forced the government to stop the wave of reductions. Now it is planned to recruit at least 6 thousand new employees in seven years. Currently, the number of active members of the French army is 205,000.
4. India
India spent $ 58 billion, or 2.1% of its GDP, in 2018 to support an army of 1.36 million troops, excluding reservists, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).
And according to Global Firepower, India's defense spending in 2019 is slightly more modest, at $ 55 billion.
However, analysts from the IISS believe that despite the large number of manpower, India's military capabilities are limited due to imperfect logistics, poor maintenance, and a lack of ammunition and spare parts for equipment.
3. China
Year after year, the leaders of the three most powerful armies in the world remain unchanged. These are China, Russia and the United States. At the same time, China has the most active military personnel - 2.18 million people, and the defense budget, according to Global Firepower, is $ 224 billion.
According to other media reports, in 2019 China will increase its military budget to $ 178 billion, up 8.9% from last year. Even amid falling economic growth, the Chinese government is unwilling to economize on the army.
The PRC intends to demonstrate the full power of its military machine by the 70th anniversary of its foundation. April 23 - the day of the formation of the Chinese Navy and October 1, two grand military parades are to be held, during which the latest weapons systems will be presented.
2. Russia
The second most powerful army in the world has 1 million troops and a defense budget of $ 44 billion. At the same time, the share of the military budget in the total budget of the country in 2019 will be 17%, while in 2018 it was 17.3%, and in 2017 - 19.3%.
The first number of the rating - the United States - shows the opposite picture, where the share of the budget of the Ministry of Defense this year will be 14.9%, and in 2018 it was 14.7%.
1. USA
America was named the most militarily powerful country in the world in 2019. This country has 1.28 million active military personnel, 13,398 aircraft, over 6,200 tanks and a defense budget of $ 716 billion.
And in March of this year, Donald Trump asked Congress to increase national defense spending to $ 750 billion in fiscal 2020. Most of the amount will go to Pentagon spending, and the remainder to overseas operations.
The weakest army in the world in 2019 was the Bhutan army. It has only 7 thousand people, and the defense budget does not exceed $ 10 million.
