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These are the 25 most powerful militaries in the world in 2018

Nov 20, 2018, 22:10 IST

Navy sailors take part in a farewell ceremony at the departure of the 19,000-ton nuclear-powered cruiser &quotPeter the Great" for military exercises at sea, in the town of Severomorsk March 30, 2010.Lev Fedoseyev/Reuters

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With its National Defense Strategy released earlier this year, the US detailed its shift from small-scale operations like counterinsurgency and toward a potential fight with a rival like Russia or China.

Countries around the world have made similar moves, refocusing on large-scale conflict.

Amid those changes, head-to-head comparisons of military strength are hard to come by. Global Firepower's 2018 Military Strength Ranking tries to fill that void by drawing on more than 55 factors to assign a Power Index score to 136 countries - adding Ireland, Montenegro, and Liberia to last year's list.

The ranking assesses the diversity of each country's weapons and pays particular attention to their available manpower. Geography, logistical capacity, available natural resources, and the status of local industry are also taken into account.

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While recognized nuclear powers receive a bonus, their nuclear stockpiles are not factored into the score. Landlocked countries are not docked for lacking a navy, but countries with navies are penalized if there is a lack of diversity in their fleets.

NATO countries get a slight bonus because the alliance theoretically shares resources, but in general, a country's current political and military leadership was not considered (though financial health and stability is).

The top power index score is 0.0000, which is "realistically unattainabile" for any military according to Global Firepower. The closer they are to this number, the more powerful their miltary is.

Per these criteria, these are the 25 most powerful militaries in the world:

25. Canada

Power Index rating: 0.4356 (NATO member)

Total population: 35,623,680

Total military personnel: 88,000

Total aircraft strength: 413

Fighter aircraft: 60

Combat tanks: 80

Total naval assets: 63

Defense budget: $16.4 billion

24. Taiwan

Power Index rating: 0.4331

Total population: 23,508,428

Total military personnel: 1,932,500

Total aircraft strength: 843

Fighter aircraft: 286

Combat tanks: 2,005

Total naval assets: 87

Defense budget: $10.725 billion

23. Algeria

Power Index rating: 0.4296

Total population: 40,969,443

Total military personnel: 792,350

Total aircraft strength: 528

Fighter aircraft: 97

Combat tanks: 2,405

Total naval assets: 85

Defense budget: $10.57 billion

22. Poland

Power Index rating: 0.4276 (NATO member)

Total population: 38,476,269

Total military personnel: 184,650

Total aircraft strength: 466

Fighter aircraft: 99

Combat tanks: 1,065

Total naval assets: 83

Defense budget: $9.36 billion

21. Australia

Power Index rating: 0.4203

Total population: 23,232,413

Total military personnel: 79,700

Total aircraft strength: 469

Fighter aircraft: 78

Combat tanks: 59

Total naval assets: 47 (two aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $26.3 billion

20. Vietnam

Power Index rating: 0.4098

Total population: 96,160,163

Total military personnel: 5,488,500

Total aircraft strength: 283

Fighter aircraft: 76

Combat 1,545

Total naval assets: 65

Defense budget: $3.365 billion

19. Spain

Power Index rating: 0.4079 (NATO member)

Total population: 48,958,159

Total military personnel: 174,700

Total aircraft strength: 524

Fighter aircraft: 122

Combat tanks: 327

Total naval assets: 46 (one aircraft carrier

Defense budget: $11.6 billion

18. North Korea

Power Index rating: 0.3876

Total population: 25,248,140

Total military personnel: 6,445,000

Total aircraft strength: 944

Fighter aircraft: 458

Combat tanks: 5,243

Total naval assets: 967

Defense budget: $7.5 billion

17. Pakistan

Power Index rating: 0.3689

Total population: 204,924,861

Total military personnel: 919,000

Total aircraft strength: 1,281

Fighter aircraft: 321

Combat tanks: 2,182

Total naval assets: 197

Defense budget: $7 billion

16. Israel

Power Index rating: 0.3444

Total population: 8,299,706

Total military personnel: 615,000

Total aircraft strength: 596

Fighter aircraft: 252

Combat tanks: 2,760

Total naval assets: 65

Defense budget: $20 billion

15. Indonesia

Power Index rating: 0.3266

Total population: 260,580,739

Total military personnel: 975,750

Total aircraft strength: 478

Fighter aircraft: 41

Combat tanks: 418

Total naval assets: 221

Defense budget: $6.9 billion

14. Brazil

Power Index rating: 0.3198

Total population: 207,353,391

Total military personnel: 1,987,000

Total aircraft strength: 723

Fighter aircraft: 43

Combat tanks: 469

Total naval assets: 110

Defense budget: $29.3 billion

13. Iran

Power Index rating: 0.3131

Total population: 82,021,564

Total military personnel: 934,000

Total aircraft strength: 505

Fighter aircraft: 150

Combat tanks: 1,650

Total naval assets: 398

Defense budget: $6.3 billion

12. Egypt

Power Index rating: 0.2751

Total population: 97,041,072

Total military personnel: 1,329,250

Total aircraft strength: 1,132

Fighter aircraft: 309

Combat tanks: 4,946

Total naval assets: 319 (two aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $4.4 billion

11. Italy

Power Index rating: 0.2565 (NATO member)

Total population: 62,137,802

Total military personnel: 267,500

Total aircraft strength: 828

Fighter aircraft: 90

Combat tanks: 200

Total naval assets: 143 (two aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $37.7 billion

10. Germany

Power Index rating: 0.2461 (NATO member)

Total population: 80,594,017

Total military personnel: 208,641

Total aircraft strength: 714

Fighter aircraft: 94

Combat tanks: 432

Total naval assets: 81

Defense budget: $45.2 billion

9. Turkey

Power Index rating: 0.2216 (NATO member)

Total population: 80,845,215

Total military personnel: 710,565

Total aircraft strength: 1,056

Fighter aircraft: 207

Combat tanks: 2,446

Total naval assets: 194

Defense budget: $10.2 billion

8. Japan

Power Index rating: 0.2107

Total population: 126,451,398

Total military personnel: 310,457

Total aircraft strength: 1,508

Fighter aircraft: 290

Combat tanks: 679

Total naval assets: 131 (four aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $44 billion

7. South Korea

Power Index rating: 0.2001

Total population: 51,181,299

Total military personnel: 5,827,250

Total aircraft strength: 1,560

Fighter aircraft: 406

Combat tanks: 2,654

Total naval assets: 166 (one aircraft carrier)

Defense budget: $40 billion

6. United Kingdom

Power Index rating: 0.1917 (NATO member)

Total population: 64,769,452

Total military personnel: 279,230

Total aircraft strength: 832

Fighter aircraft: 103

Combat tanks 227

Total naval assets: 76 (two aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $50 billion

5. France

Power Index rating: 0.1869 (NATO member)

Total population: 67,106,161

Total military personnel: 388,635

Total aircraft strength: 1,262

Fighter aircraft 299

Combat tanks: 406

Total naval assets: 118 (four aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $40 billion

4. India

Power Index rating: 0.1417

Total population: 1,281,935,911

Total military personnel: 4,207,250

Total aircraft strength: 2,185

Fighter aircraft: 590

Combat tanks: 4,426

Total naval assets: 295 (one aircraft carrier)

Defense budget: $47 billion

3. China

Power Index rating: 0.0852

Total population: 1,379,302,771

Total military personnel: 2,693,000

Total aircraft strength: 3,035

Fighter aircraft: 1,125

Combat tanks: 7,716

Total naval assets: 714 (one aircraft carrier)

Defense budget: $151 billion

2. Russia

Power Index rating: 0.0841

Total population: 142,257,519

Total military personnel: 3,586,128

Total aircraft strength: 3,914

Fighter aircraft: 818

Combat tanks: 20,300

Total naval assets: 352 (one aircraft carrier out of service indefinitely)

Defense budget: $47 billion

1. United States

Power Index rating: 0.0818 (NATO member)

Total population: 326,625,791

Total military personnel: 2,083,100

Total aircraft: 13,362

Fighter aircraft: 1,962

Combat tanks: 5,884

Total naval assets: 415 (20 aircraft carriers)

Defense budget: $647 billion

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