This Asian Nation Is Supercharging Its Military Power – and It’s Not China

By Chris Lange Published Dec 10, 9:30AM EST

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This Asian Nation Is Supercharging Its Military Power – and It’s Not China — © Public Domain / Wikimedia Commons

The balance of military power throughout the world is constantly in motion, ever shifting tides of alliances and technological innovation tip the scales of power in one way or the other. The strongest militaries in the world have maintained their strength for decades now, but there are many nations on the rise, acquiring new technology, aircraft, and other assets that are further lending to their power.

24/7 Wall St. is taking a look at the rising military powers around the world, those gaining the most ground, and what the composition of their forces looks like. To determine the “Powers on the Rise” countries with the strongest military might, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. Global Firepower ranked 145 countries based on their PowerIndex, a composite of over 60 measures in categories such as military might, financials, logistical capability, and geography. The smaller the PowerIndex value the more powerful a nation’s theoretical conventional fighting capability is.

We specifically reviewed countries that are considered “Powers on the Rise” meaning these are the countries that have gained the most military strength in the last year. We included supplemental information regarding active military personnel, military aircraft, vehicles, and naval power as well. We included supplemental information regarding active military personnel, military aircraft, vehicles, and naval power as well.

Here is a look at the strongest rising military powers of the world:

Why Are We Covering This?

Understanding global military dynamics is incredibly important due to the interconnected nature of international relations and conflicts. As long as civilization has existed, the world has witnessed shifting power balances and alliances which have ultimately shaped the current geopolitical landscape. While key players like the United States, China, and Russia are easily the global powers, there are a number of emerging military powers that have their own spheres of influence and give shape to geopolitical relations in their own unique way.

30. Estonia

Active military personnel: 7,700
Reserve military personnel: 78,800
Paramilitary personnel: 10,000
Total military personnel: 96,500
Total military aircraft: 7
Total helicopters: 3
Total military vehicles: 1,409
Total tanks: 0
Total navy ships and submarines: 10
Military strength score and world rank: 1.7237 – #87 out of 145

Estonia has a total population of 1.2 million, of this population 459,455 are fit to serve in the military.

29. Paraguay

Paraguay tank (CC BY-SA 3.0) by Rolgiati

Active military personnel: 15,650
Reserve military personnel: 168,500
Paramilitary personnel: 15,000
Total military personnel: 199,150
Total military aircraft: 41
Total helicopters: 14
Total military vehicles: 1,936
Total tanks: 10
Total navy ships and submarines: 0
Military strength score and world rank: 1.7053 – #85 out of 145

Paraguay has a total population of 7.4 million, of this population 3.0 million are fit to serve in the military.

28. Georgia

MLRS (CC BY-SA 4.0) by Lynx-extra

Active military personnel: 55,000
Reserve military personnel: 152,500
Paramilitary personnel: 0
Total military personnel: 207,500
Total military aircraft: 52
Total helicopters: 42
Total military vehicles: 5,256
Total tanks: 235
Total navy ships and submarines: 19
Military strength score and world rank: 1.6969 – #84 out of 145

Georgia has a total population of 4.9 million, of this population 2.2 million are fit to serve in the military.

27. Jordan

Active military personnel: 100,500
Reserve military personnel: 65,000
Paramilitary personnel: 35,000
Total military personnel: 200,500
Total military aircraft: 265
Total helicopters: 148
Total military vehicles: 24,148
Total tanks: 1,365
Total navy ships and submarines: 27
Military strength score and world rank: 1.4651 – #80 out of 145

Jordan has a total population of 11,086,716 million, of this population 2,960,153 are fit to serve in the military.

26. Libya

Active military personnel: 32,000
Reserve military personnel: 0
Paramilitary personnel: 100,000
Total military personnel: 132,000
Total military aircraft: 132
Total helicopters: 32
Total military vehicles: 2,890
Total tanks: 300
Total navy ships and submarines: 7
Military strength score and world rank: 1.4449 – #79 out of 145

Libya has a total population of 7.3 million, of this population 3.2 million are fit to serve in the military.

25. Kuwait

Active military personnel: 72,000
Reserve military personnel: 24,000
Paramilitary personnel: 7,500
Total military personnel: 103,500
Total military aircraft: 144
Total helicopters: 60
Total military vehicles: 4,409
Total tanks: 367
Total navy ships and submarines: 123
Military strength score and world rank: 1.4261 – #77 out of 145

Kuwait has a total population of 3.1 million, of this population 1.4 million are fit to serve in the military.

24. Austria

Active military personnel: 16,000
Reserve military personnel: 125,600
Paramilitary personnel: 0
Total military personnel: 141,600
Total military aircraft: 104
Total helicopters: 66
Total military vehicles: 848
Total tanks: 58
Total navy ships and submarines: 0
Military strength score and world rank: 1.2351 – #71 out of 145

Austria has a total population of 8.9 million, of this population 3.6 million are fit to serve in the military.

23. New Zealand

Active military personnel: 8,670
Reserve military personnel: 3,250
Paramilitary personnel: 300
Total military personnel: 12,220
Total military aircraft: 47
Total helicopters: 22
Total military vehicles: 4,040
Total tanks: 0
Total navy ships and submarines: 9
Military strength score and world rank: 1.1844 – #67 out of 145

New Zealand has a total population of 5.1 million, of this population 1.8 million are fit to serve in the military.

22. Croatia

Active military personnel: 14,325
Reserve military personnel: 20,100
Paramilitary personnel: 2,000
Total military personnel: 36,425
Total military aircraft: 81
Total helicopters: 52
Total military vehicles: 3,076
Total tanks: 75
Total navy ships and submarines: 32
Military strength score and world rank: 1.1333 – #66 out of 145

Croatia has a total population of 4.2 million, of this population 1.6 million are fit to serve in the military.

21. Qatar

Active military personnel: 66,550
Reserve military personnel: 15,000
Paramilitary personnel: 5,500
Total military personnel: 87,050
Total military aircraft: 228
Total helicopters: 67
Total military vehicles: 5,544
Total tanks: 99
Total navy ships and submarines: 123
Military strength score and world rank: 1.0789 – #63 out of 145

Qatar has a total population of 2.5 million, of this population 486,164 are fit to serve in the military.

20. Syria

Active military personnel: 170,000
Reserve military personnel: 50,000
Paramilitary personnel: 50,000
Total military personnel: 270,000
Total military aircraft: 452
Total helicopters: 153
Total military vehicles: 14,550
Total tanks: 2,720
Total navy ships and submarines: 47
Military strength score and world rank: 1.0026 – #60 out of 145

Syria has a total population of 22.9 million, of this population 12.7 million are fit to serve in the military.

19. Kazakhstan

Russian Tank T-80 with Gas Tur... by Andrey Korchagin

Russian Tank T-80 with Gas Tur... (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Andrey Korchagin

Active military personnel: 110,000
Reserve military personnel: 135,000
Paramilitary personnel: 55,000
Total military personnel: 300,000
Total military aircraft: 243
Total helicopters: 75
Total military vehicles: 6,012
Total tanks: 300
Total navy ships and submarines: 18
Military strength score and world rank: 0.9495 – #58 out of 145

Kazakhstan has a total population of 19.5 million, of this population 6.7 million are fit to serve in the military.

18. Serbia

Active military personnel: 25,000
Reserve military personnel: 2,000
Paramilitary personnel: 600,000
Total military personnel: 627,000
Total military aircraft: 112
Total helicopters: 44
Total military vehicles: 3,954
Total tanks: 262
Total navy ships and submarines: 0
Military strength score and world rank: 0.9038 – #56 out of 145

Serbia has a total population of 6.7 million, of this population 2.6 million are fit to serve in the military.

17. United Arab Emirates

Active military personnel: 65,000
Reserve military personnel: 130,000
Paramilitary personnel: 12,000
Total military personnel: 207,000
Total military aircraft: 560
Total helicopters: 246
Total military vehicles: 12,253
Total tanks: 354
Total navy ships and submarines: 79
Military strength score and world rank: 0.8083 – #51 out of 145

The United Arab Emirates has a total population of 10.0 million, of this population 4.9 million are fit to serve in the military.

16. Finland

Finland artillery | Missile system on the background of the Finnish flag

Active military personnel: 24,000
Reserve military personnel: 870,000
Paramilitary personnel: 53,800
Total military personnel: 947,800
Total military aircraft: 164
Total helicopters: 27
Total military vehicles: 11,716
Total tanks: 200
Total navy ships and submarines: 246
Military strength score and world rank: 0.7967 – #50 out of 145

Finland has a total population of 5.6 million, of this population 1.9 million are fit to serve in the military.

15. Denmark

The military at Rosenborg cast... by Sunny Ripert

The military at Rosenborg cast... (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Sunny Ripert

Active military personnel: 20,000
Reserve military personnel: 12,000
Paramilitary personnel: 51,000
Total military personnel: 83,000
Total military aircraft: 119
Total helicopters: 34
Total military vehicles: 4,056
Total tanks: 44
Total navy ships and submarines: 91
Military strength score and world rank: 0.7743 – #48 out of 145

Denmark has a total population of 5.9 million, of this population 2.1 million are fit to serve in the military.

14. Czechia

Active military personnel: 28,000
Reserve military personnel: 4,200
Paramilitary personnel: 0
Total military personnel: 32,200
Total military aircraft: 88
Total helicopters: 33
Total military vehicles: 6,757
Total tanks: 65
Total navy ships and submarines: 0
Military strength score and world rank: 0.7706 – #46 out of 145

Czechia has a total population of 10.7 million, of this population 4.1 million are fit to serve in the military.

13. Switzerland

Swiss soldier SG550 GL5040 (CC BY-SA 3.0) by Alpha2412

Active military personnel: 101,584
Reserve military personnel: 49,715
Paramilitary personnel: 5,000
Total military personnel: 156,299
Total military aircraft: 147
Total helicopters: 41
Total military vehicles: 4,304
Total tanks: 134
Total navy ships and submarines: 0
Military strength score and world rank: 0.6097 – #43 out of 145

Switzerland has a total population of 8.6 million, of this population 3.1 million are fit to serve in the military.

12. Portugal

portugal artillery by Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum

portugal artillery (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum

Active military personnel: 24,000
Reserve military personnel: 211,700
Paramilitary personnel: 24,700
Total military personnel: 260,400
Total military aircraft: 117
Total helicopters: 38
Total military vehicles: 11,173
Total tanks: 34
Total navy ships and submarines: 113
Military strength score and world rank: 0.5609 – #38 out of 145

Portugal has a total population of 10.5 million, of this population 4.0 million are fit to serve in the military.

11. Bangladesh

Active military personnel: 163,000
Reserve military personnel: 0
Paramilitary personnel: 6,800,000
Total military personnel: 6,963,000
Total military aircraft: 216
Total helicopters: 73
Total military vehicles: 13,100
Total tanks: 320
Total navy ships and submarines: 117
Military strength score and world rank: 0.5419 – #37 out of 145

Bangladesh has a total population of 167.2 million, of this population 65.5 million are fit to serve in the military.

10. Myanmar

Active military personnel: 150,000
Reserve military personnel: 20,000
Paramilitary personnel: 55,000
Total military personnel: 225,000
Total military aircraft: 293
Total helicopters: 80
Total military vehicles: 8,139
Total tanks: 705
Total navy ships and submarines: 227
Military strength score and world rank: 0.5251 – #35 out of 145

Myanmar has a total population of 58.0 million, of this population 22.1 million are fit to serve in the military.

9. Sweden

Sweden tank (CC BY-SA 3.0) by Jorchr

Active military personnel: 24,400
Reserve military personnel: 32,900
Paramilitary personnel: 25,000
Total military personnel: 82,300
Total military aircraft: 212
Total helicopters: 53
Total military vehicles: 7,958
Total tanks: 120
Total navy ships and submarines: 353
Military strength score and world rank: 0.4009 – #29 out of 145

Sweden has a total population of 10.5 million, of this population 3.5 million are fit to serve in the military.

8. Poland

Poland military | Polish army with machine guns in field uniform.

Active military personnel: 202,100
Reserve military personnel: 350,000
Paramilitary personnel: 50,000
Total military personnel: 602,100
Total military aircraft: 468
Total helicopters: 215
Total military vehicles: 13,956
Total tanks: 612
Total navy ships and submarines: 45
Military strength score and world rank: 0.2917 – #21 out of 145

Poland has a total population of 38.0 million, of this population 15.3 million are fit to serve in the military.

7. Spain

F-18 Hornet (CC BY 2.0) by VALDITHRASH

Active military personnel: 133,282
Reserve military personnel: 15,150
Paramilitary personnel: 78,470
Total military personnel: 226,902
Total military aircraft: 513
Total helicopters: 121
Total military vehicles: 15,046
Total tanks: 327
Total navy ships and submarines: 168
Military strength score and world rank: 0.2882 – #20 out of 145

Spain has a total population of 47.2 million, of this population 17.6 million are fit to serve in the military.

6. Germany

Active military personnel: 181,600
Reserve military personnel: 34,000
Paramilitary personnel: 0
Total military personnel: 215,600
Total military aircraft: 618
Total helicopters: 318
Total military vehicles: 79,317
Total tanks: 295
Total navy ships and submarines: 64
Military strength score and world rank: 0.2847 – #19 out of 145

Germany has a total population of 84.2 million, of this population 31.0 million are fit to serve in the military.

5. Israel

Active military personnel: 170,000
Reserve military personnel: 465,000
Paramilitary personnel: 35,000
Total military personnel: 670,000
Total military aircraft: 612
Total helicopters: 146
Total military vehicles: 43,407
Total tanks: 1,370
Total navy ships and submarines: 67
Military strength score and world rank: 0.2596 – #17 out of 145

Israel has a total population of 9.0 million, of this population 3.2 million are fit to serve in the military.

4. Iran

Military rockets, wall with barbwire and Iran national flag by Valery Evlakhov

Military rockets, wall with barbwire and Iran national flag (Shutterstock.com) by Valery Evlakhov

Active military personnel: 610,000
Reserve military personnel: 350,000
Paramilitary personnel: 220,000
Total military personnel: 1,180,000
Total military aircraft: 551
Total helicopters: 129
Total military vehicles: 65,765
Total tanks: 1,996
Total navy ships and submarines: 101
Military strength score and world rank: 0.2269 – #14 out of 145

Iran has a total population of 87.6 million, of this population 41.2 million are fit to serve in the military.

3. Turkey

Active military personnel: 355,200
Reserve military personnel: 378,700
Paramilitary personnel: 150,000
Total military personnel: 883,900
Total military aircraft: 1,069
Total helicopters: 502
Total military vehicles: 55,104
Total tanks: 2,231
Total navy ships and submarines: 186
Military strength score and world rank: 0.1697 – #8 out of 145

Turkey has a total population of 83.6 million, of this population 3.6 million are fit to serve in the military.

2. Japan

Active military personnel: 247,150
Reserve military personnel: 56,000
Paramilitary personnel: 25,000
Total military personnel: 328,150
Total military aircraft: 1,459
Total helicopters: 577
Total military vehicles: 37,662
Total tanks: 518
Total navy ships and submarines: 155
Military strength score and world rank: 0.1601 – #7 out of 145

Japan has a total population of 123.7 million, of this population 43.1 million are fit to serve in the military.

1. South Korea

Flag of South Korea on soldiers arm. Flag of South Korea on military uniforms (collage). by Bumble Dee

Flag of South Korea on soldiers arm. Flag of South Korea on military uniforms (collage). (Shutterstock.com) by Bumble Dee

Active military personnel: 600,000
Reserve military personnel: 3,100,000
Paramilitary personnel: 120,000
Total military personnel: 3,820,000
Total military aircraft: 1,576
Total helicopters: 758
Total military vehicles: 66,492
Total tanks: 2,501
Total navy ships and submarines: 200
Military strength score and world rank: 0.1416 – #5 out of 145

South Korea has a total population of 52.0 million, of this population 21.3 million are fit to serve in the military.

About the Author Chris Lange →

Chris Lange is a writer for 24/7 Wall St., based in Houston. He has covered financial markets over the past decade with an emphasis on healthcare, tech, and IPOs. During this time, he has published thousands of articles with insightful analysis across these complex fields. Currently, Lange's focus is on military and geopolitical topics.

Lange's work has been quoted or mentioned in Forbes, The New York Times, Business Insider, USA Today, MSN, Yahoo, The Verge, Vice, The Intelligencer, Quartz, Nasdaq, The Motley Fool, Fox Business, International Business Times, The Street, Seeking Alpha, Barron’s, Benzinga, and many other major publications.

A graduate of Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas, Lange majored in business with a particular focus on investments. He has previous experience in the banking industry and startups.