President Donald Trump has emphasized military might during his first year in office, but the US is not the only country seeking to expand its battlefield capacities. Between 2012 and 2016, more weapons were delivered than during any five-year period since 1990.
Arms sales indicate who is beefing up their armed forces, but head-to-head military comparisons are harder to come by. Global Firepower’s 2017 Military Strength Ranking tries to fill that void by drawing on more than 50 factors to assign a Power Index score to 133 countries.
The ranking assesses the diversity of weapons held by each country and pays particular attention to the manpower available. The geography, logistical capacity, available natural resources, and the status of local industry are also taken into account.
While recognized nuclear powers receive a bonus, the nuclear stockpiles are not factored into the score.
Moreover, countries that are landlocked are not docked points for lacking a navy, though they are penalized for not having a merchant marine force.
Countries with navies are penalized if there is a lack of diversity in their naval assets.
NATO countries get a slight bonus because the alliance would theoretically share resources, but in general, a country's current political and military leadership was not considered.
"Balance is the key - a large, strong fighting force across land, sea and air backed by a resilient economy and defensible territory along with an efficient infrastructure - such qualities are those used to round out a particular nation's total fighting strength on paper," the ranking states.
Below, you can see the 25 most powerful militaries in the world:
25. Algeria
Power Index rating: 0.4366
Total population: 40,263,711
Total military personnel: 792,350
Total aircraft strength: 502
Fighter aircraft: 89
Combat tanks: 2,405
Total naval assets: 85
Defense budget: $10.6 billion
24. Saudi Arabia
Power Index rating: 0.4302
Total population: 28,160,273
Total military personnel: 256,000
Total aircraft strength: 790
Fighter aircraft: 177
Combat tanks: 1,142
Total naval assets: 55
Defense budget: $56.7 billion
23. North Korea
Power Index rating: 0.4218
Total population: 25,115,311
Total military personnel: 6,445,000
Total aircraft strength: 944
Fighter aircraft: 458
Combat tanks: 5,025
Total naval assets: 967
Defense budget: $7.5 billion
22. Australia
Power Index rating: 0.4072
Total population: 22,992,654
Total military personnel: 81,000
Total aircraft strength: 465
Fighter aircraft: 78
Combat tanks: 59
Total naval assets: 47 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $24.1 billion
21. Iran
Power Index rating: 0.3933
Total population: 82,801,633
Total military personnel: 934,000
Total aircraft strength: 477
Fighter aircraft: 137
Combat tanks: 1,616
Total naval assets: 398
Defense budget: $6.3 billion
20. Thailand
Power Index rating: 0.3892
Total population: 68,200,824
Total military personnel: 627,425
Total aircraft strength: 555
Fighter aircraft: 76
Combat tanks: 737
Total naval assets: 81 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $5.4 billion
19. Poland
Power Index rating: 0.3831
Total population: 38,523,261
Total military personnel: 184,650
Total aircraft strength: 465
Fighter aircraft: 99
Combat tanks: 1,065
Total naval assets: 83
Defense budget: $9.4 billion
18. Taiwan
Power Index rating: 0.3765
Total population: 23,464,787
Total military personnel: 1,932,500
Total aircraft strength: 850
Fighter aircraft: 286
Combat tanks: 2,005
Total naval assets: 87
Defense budget: $10.7 billion
17. Brazil
Power Index rating: 0.3654
Total population: 205,823,665
Total military personnel: 1,987,000
Total aircraft strength: 697
Fighter aircraft: 43
Combat tanks: 469
Total naval assets: 110
Defense budget: $24.5 billion
16. Vietnam
Power Index rating: 0.3587
Total population: 95,261,021
Total military personnel: 5,488,500
Total aircraft strength: 278
Fighter aircraft: 76
Combat 1,545
Total naval assets: 65
Defense budget: $3.4 billion
15. Israel
Power Index rating: 0.3476
Total population: 8,174,527
Total military personnel: 718,250
Total aircraft strength: 652
Fighter aircraft: 243
Combat tanks: 2,620
Total naval assets: 65
Defense budget: $15.5 billion
14. Indonesia
Power Index rating: 0.3347
Total population: 258,316,051
Total military personnel: 975,750
Total aircraft strength: 441
Fighter aircraft: 39
Combat tanks: 418
Total naval assets: 221
Defense budget: $6.9 billion
13. Pakistan
Power Index rating: 0.3287
Total population: 201,995,540
Total military personnel: 919,000
Total aircraft strength: 951
Fighter aircraft: 301
Combat tanks: 2,924
Total naval assets: 197
Defense budget: $7 billion
12. South Korea
Power Index rating: 0.2741
Total population: 50,924,172
Total military personnel: 5,829,750
Total aircraft strength: 1,477
Fighter aircraft: 406
Combat tanks: 2,654
Total naval assets: 166 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $43.8 billion
11. Italy
Power Index rating: 0.2694
Total population: 62,007,540
Total military personnel: 267,500
Total aircraft strength: 822
Fighter aircraft: 79
Combat tanks: 200
Total naval assets: 143 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $34 billion
10. Egypt
Power Index rating: 0.2676
Total population: 94,666,993
Total military personnel: 1,329,250
Total aircraft strength: 1,132
Fighter aircraft: 337
Combat tanks: 4,110
Total naval assets: 319 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $4.4 billion
9. Germany
Power Index rating: 0.2609
Total population: 80,722,792
Total military personnel: 210,000
Total aircraft strength: 698
Fighter aircraft: 92
Combat tanks: 543
Total naval assets: 81
Defense budget: $39.2 billion
8. Turkey
Power Index rating: 0.2491
Total population: 80,274,604
Total military personnel: 743,415
Total aircraft strength: 1,018
Fighter aircraft: 207
Combat tanks: 2,445
Total naval assets: 194
Defense budget: $8.2 billion
7. Japan
Power Index rating: 0.2137
Total population: 126,702,133
Total military personnel: 311,875
Total aircraft strength: 1,594
Fighter aircraft: 288
Combat tanks: 700
Total naval assets: 131 (four aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $43.8 billion
6. United Kingdom
Power Index rating: 0.2131
Total population: 64,430,428
Total military personnel: 232,675
Total aircraft strength: 856
Fighter aircraft: 88
Combat tanks 249
Total naval assets: 76 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $45.7 billion
5. France
Power Index rating: 0.1914
Total population: 66,836,154
Total military personnel: 387,635
Total aicraft strength: 1,305
Fighter aircraft 296
Combat tanks: 406
Total naval assets: 118 (four aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $35 billion
4. India
Power Index rating: 0.1593
Total population: 1,266,883,598
Total military personnel: 4,207,250
Total aircraft strength: 2,102
Fighter aircraft: 676
Combat tanks: 4,426
Total naval assets: 295 (three aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $51 billion
3. China
Power Index rating: 0.0945
Total population: 1,373,541,278
Total military personnel: 3,712,500
Total aircraft strength: 2,955
Fighter aircraft: 1,271
Combat tanks: 6,457
Total naval assets: 714 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $161.7 billion
2. Russia
Power Index rating: 0.0929
Total population: 142,355,415
Total military personnel: 3,371,027
Total aircraft strength: 3,794
Fighter aircraft: 806
Combat tanks: 20,216
Total naval assets: 352 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $44.6 billion
1. United States
Power Index rating: 0.0857
Total population: 323,995,528
Total military personnel: 2,363,675
Total aircraft: 13,762
Fighter aircraft: 2,296
Combat tanks: 5,884
Total naval assets: 415 (19 aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $587.8 billion