This Country Spent Billions Building a Artillery Army 6x Bigger Than America's

Military

South+Korea+artillery | M115 8-Inch Howitzer (USA)

Published: March 12, 2025 9:45 am

Although military technology has advanced by leaps and bounds over the last two decades in the sense of drones and cyber, having a strong ground force is still incredibly important to maintaining a powerful military. Artillery has been the backbone of this for over a century. Being able to hit targets accurately from a distance has been central to these land-based systems. (These economic powers have the largest standing armies in the world, and America is not #1.)

Again, as technology has improved over the years these artillery weapons systems have advanced with the times. However, this advancement comes with a cost. Newer systems and ammunition can cost a fair amount, nonetheless, maintaining a sizable arsenal of these systems is costly as well. In fact some of the largest artillery armies in the world are very well funded. While other sizable artillery forces might be outdated, a serious chunk of change was sunk into these systems at the time to bolster their military firepower. Here, 24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the largest artillery forces in the world.

To identify the countries with the most artillery units in the world, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed 2024 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. Countries were ranked on the total number of artillery units in their arsenal. We included supplemental information regarding the total military vehicles, tanks and MLRS units, as well as each country’s overall military strength score and defense budget.

Here is a look at the countries with the largest artillery armies in the world:

Why Are We Covering This?

Asia map in satellite picture, view of China, Korea, India, Malaysia, Taiwan from space. Orbit photo of Earth, globe at night. Dark seas and Pacific ocean. Elements of this image furnished by NASA

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 considered the strongest military powers in the world, there are a number of other nations with their own spheres of influence and strengths that impact global relations from a military perspective.

31. Turkmenistan

Total artillery: 523
Total towed artillery: 450
Total self-propelled artillery: 73
Total tanks: 654
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 164
Total military vehicles: 5,016
Military defense budget: $1,078,020,000 – #86 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.6512 – #77 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Turkmenistan has 91 military aircraft (including 27 attack aircraft, 24 fighter aircraft, and 26 helicopters). Turkmenistan has 36,500 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 5.7 million.

30. Israel

Total artillery: 523
Total towed artillery: 171
Total self-propelled artillery: 352
Total tanks: 1,300
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 183
Total military vehicles: 35,985
Military defense budget: $30,500,000,000 – #17 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.2661 – #15 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Israel has 611 military aircraft (including 38 attack aircraft, 240 fighter aircraft, and 147 helicopters). Israel has 170,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 9.4 million.

29. Morocco

Total artillery: 549
Total towed artillery: 153
Total self-propelled artillery: 396
Total tanks: 903
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 129
Total military vehicles: 7,877
Military defense budget: $13,400,000,000 – #27 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.1273 – #59 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Morocco has 260 military aircraft (including 83 fighter aircraft and 78 helicopters). Morocco has 195,800 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 37.4 million.

28. Indonesia

Total artillery: 549
Total towed artillery: 396
Total self-propelled artillery: 153
Total tanks: 331
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 63
Total military vehicles: 20,440
Military defense budget: $10,600,000,000 – #29 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.2557 – #13 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Indonesia has 459 military aircraft (including 34 attack aircraft, 41 fighter aircraft, and 214 helicopters). Indonesia has 400,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 281.6 million.

27. Belarus

9K22 Tunguska Anti-Aircraft We... by Andrey Korchagin

9K22 Tunguska Anti-Aircraft We... (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Andrey Korchagin

Total artillery: 572
Total towed artillery: 215
Total self-propelled artillery: 357
Total tanks: 507
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 206
Total military vehicles: 6,916
Military defense budget: $1,077,900,000 – #87 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.3954 – #70 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Belarus has 185 military aircraft (including 50 attack aircraft, 36 fighter aircraft, and 68 helicopters). Belarus has 63,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 9.5 million.

26. Vietnam

Artillery (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Marie

Total artillery: 575
Total towed artillery: 535
Total self-propelled artillery: 40
Total tanks: 1,374
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 474
Total military vehicles: 11,912
Military defense budget: $8,594,000,000 – #35 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.4024 – #24 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Vietnam has 246 military aircraft (including 32 attack aircraft, 41 fighter aircraft, and 101 helicopters). Vietnam has 600,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 105.8 million.

25. Angola

Angola military | Angolan military force, army or war concept. 3D rendering isolated on white background

Total artillery: 600
Total towed artillery: 575
Total self-propelled artillery: 25
Total tanks: 309
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 113
Total military vehicles: 5,500
Military defense budget: $1,101,360,000 – #85 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.0961 – #56 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Angola has 298 military aircraft (including 12 attack aircraft, 71 fighter aircraft, and 116 helicopters). Angola has 107,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 37.2 million.

24. Bangladesh

Total artillery: 602
Total towed artillery: 546
Total self-propelled artillery: 56
Total tanks: 320
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 110
Total military vehicles: 11,584
Military defense budget: $4,374,000,000 – #56 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.6062 – #35 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Bangladesh has 214 military aircraft (including 42 fighter aircraft and 65 helicopters). Bangladesh has 163,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 168.7 million.

23. Japan

Total artillery: 629
Total towed artillery: 480
Total self-propelled artillery: 149
Total tanks: 521
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 54
Total military vehicles: 31,964
Military defense budget: $57,000,000,000 – #7 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.1839 – #7 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Japan has 1,443 military aircraft (including 38 attack aircraft, 217 fighter aircraft, and 596 helicopters). Japan has 247,150 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 123.2 million.

22. Thailand

Total artillery: 639
Total towed artillery: 589
Total self-propelled artillery: 50
Total tanks: 635
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 26
Total military vehicles: 16,935
Military defense budget: $5,887,883,500 – #45 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.4536 – #26 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Thailand has 493 military aircraft (including 20 attack aircraft, 72 fighter aircraft, and 258 helicopters). Thailand has 360,850 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 69.9 million.

21. Poland

Total artillery: 677
Total towed artillery: 0
Total self-propelled artillery: 677
Total tanks: 614
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 196
Total military vehicles: 23,138
Military defense budget: $48,700,000,000 – #12 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3776 – #22 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Poland has 479 military aircraft (including 44 attack aircraft, 59 fighter aircraft, and 216 helicopters). Poland has 202,100 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 38.7 million.

20. Algeria

Total artillery: 707
Total towed artillery: 483
Total self-propelled artillery: 224
Total tanks: 1,485
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 266
Total military vehicles: 26,000
Military defense budget: $25,000,000,000 – #21 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3589 – #20 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Algeria has 608 military aircraft (including 42 attack aircraft, 102 fighter aircraft, and 299 helicopters). Algeria has 325,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 47.0 million.

19. Romania

Total artillery: 720
Total towed artillery: 720
Total self-propelled artillery: 0
Total tanks: 328
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 243
Total military vehicles: 10,774
Military defense budget: $9,700,000,000 – #33 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.8984 – #51 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Romania has 140 military aircraft (including 21 fighter aircraft and 65 helicopters). Romania has 81,300 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 18.1 million.

18. Syria

Total artillery: 731
Total towed artillery: 641
Total self-propelled artillery: 90
Total tanks: 365
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 204
Total military vehicles: 11,148
Military defense budget: $291,850,000 – #124 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.2771 – #64 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Syria has 207 military aircraft (including 9 attack aircraft, 104 fighter aircraft, and 77 helicopters). Syria has 170,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 23.9 million.

17. Finland

Total artillery: 774
Total towed artillery: 667
Total self-propelled artillery: 107
Total tanks: 200
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 76
Total military vehicles: 11,704
Military defense budget: $6,779,661,000 – #42 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.8437 – #48 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Finland has 163 military aircraft (including 54 fighter aircraft and 27 helicopters). Finland has 24,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 5.6 million.

16. Saudi Arabia

Operation Desert Storm (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Lietmotiv

Total artillery: 799
Total towed artillery: 467
Total self-propelled artillery: 332
Total tanks: 840
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 321
Total military vehicles: 19,040
Military defense budget: $74,760,000,000 – #5 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.4201 – #25 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Saudi Arabia has 917 military aircraft (including 81 attack aircraft, 283 fighter aircraft, and 264 helicopters). Saudi Arabia has 257,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 36.5 million.

15. Azerbaijan

Total artillery: 848
Total towed artillery: 650
Total self-propelled artillery: 198
Total tanks: 497
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 268
Total military vehicles: 7,642
Military defense budget: $5,000,000,000 – #49 out of 145
Military strength score: 1.2531 – #60 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Azerbaijan has 154 military aircraft (including 18 attack aircraft, 12 fighter aircraft, and 86 helicopters). Azerbaijan has 126,400 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 10.7 million.

14. Iraq

Total artillery: 1044
Total towed artillery: 610
Total self-propelled artillery: 434
Total tanks: 1,025
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 572
Total military vehicles: 37,288
Military defense budget: $7,923,000,000 – #37 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.7738 – #43 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Iraq has 391 military aircraft (including 36 attack aircraft, 26 fighter aircraft, and 197 helicopters). Iraq has 193,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 42.1 million.

13. Ukraine

Total artillery: 1273
Total towed artillery: 615
Total self-propelled artillery: 658
Total tanks: 1,114
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 279
Total military vehicles: 18,920
Military defense budget: $53,700,000,000 – #10 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3755 – #21 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Ukraine has 324 military aircraft (including 36 attack aircraft, 70 fighter aircraft, and 136 helicopters). Ukraine has 900,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 35.7 million.

12. Greece

Total artillery: 1287
Total towed artillery: 698
Total self-propelled artillery: 589
Total tanks: 1,344
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 152
Total military vehicles: 61,888
Military defense budget: $6,500,000,000 – #44 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.5337 – #30 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Greece has 558 military aircraft (including 178 fighter aircraft and 293 helicopters). Greece has 142,700 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 10.5 million.

11. Taiwan

Total artillery: 1,848
Total towed artillery: 1,360
Total self-propelled artillery: 488
Total tanks: 888
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 234
Total military vehicles: 19,921
Military defense budget: $19,740,000,000 – #23 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3988 – #23 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Taiwan has 761 military aircraft (including 285 fighter aircraft and 236 helicopters). Taiwan has 215,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 23.6 million.

10. United States

Total artillery: 1,883
Total towed artillery: 1,212
Total self-propelled artillery: 671
Total tanks: 4,640
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 641
Total military vehicles: 391,963
Military defense budget: $895,000,000,000 – #1 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.0744 – #1 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, the United States has 13,043 military aircraft (including 889 attack aircraft, 1,790 fighter aircraft, and 5,843 helicopters). The United States has 1,328,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 342.0 million.

9. North Korea

Total artillery: 2,000
Total towed artillery: 700
Total self-propelled artillery: 1,300
Total tanks: 4,344
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 1,500
Total military vehicles: 18,288
Military defense budget: $4,736,000,000 – #51 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.6016 – #34 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, North Korea has 861 military aircraft (including 114 attack aircraft, 368 fighter aircraft, and 205 helicopters). North Korea has 1,320,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 26.3 million.

8. Egypt

Total artillery: 2,018
Total towed artillery: 962
Total self-propelled artillery: 1,056
Total tanks: 3,620
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 528
Total military vehicles: 41,012
Military defense budget: $5,879,500,000 – #46 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3427 – #19 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Egypt has 1,093 military aircraft (including 90 attack aircraft, 238 fighter aircraft, and 348 helicopters). Egypt has 440,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 111.2 million.

7. Iran

Military rockets, wall with barbwire and Iran national flag

Total artillery: 2,462
Total towed artillery: 2,070
Total self-propelled artillery: 392
Total tanks: 1,713
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 1,517
Total military vehicles: 65,825
Military defense budget: $15,450,000,000 – #25 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.3048 – #16 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Iran has 551 military aircraft (including 21 attack aircraft, 188 fighter aircraft, and 128 helicopters). Iran has 610,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 88.4 million.

6. Turkey

Total artillery: 2,745
Total towed artillery: 1,707
Total self-propelled artillery: 1,038
Total tanks: 2,238
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 296
Total military vehicles: 61,173
Military defense budget: $47,000,000,000 – #13 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.1902 – #9 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Turkey has 1,083 military aircraft (including 201 fighter aircraft and 508 helicopters). Turkey has 355,200 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 84.1 million.

5. Pakistan

Total artillery: 3,291
Total towed artillery: 2,629
Total self-propelled artillery: 662
Total tanks: 2,627
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 600
Total military vehicles: 17,516
Military defense budget: $7,640,000,000 – #38 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.2513 – #12 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Pakistan has 1,399 military aircraft (including 90 attack aircraft, 328 fighter aircraft, and 373 helicopters). Pakistan has 654,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 252.4 million.

4. India

Total artillery: 4,075
Total towed artillery: 3,975
Total self-propelled artillery: 100
Total tanks: 4,201
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 264
Total military vehicles: 148,594
Military defense budget: $75,000,000,000 – #4 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.1184 – #4 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, India has 2,229 military aircraft (including 130 attack aircraft, 513 fighter aircraft, and 899 helicopters). India has 1,455,550 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 1.41 billion.

3. China

Total artillery: 4,490
Total towed artillery: 1,000
Total self-propelled artillery: 3,490
Total tanks: 6,800
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 2,750
Total military vehicles: 144,017
Military defense budget: $266,850,000,000 – #2 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.0788 – #3 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, China has 3,309 military aircraft (including 371 attack aircraft, 1,212 fighter aircraft, and 913 helicopters). China has 2,035,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 1.42 billion.

2. South Korea

Total artillery: 7,670
Total towed artillery: 4,400
Total self-propelled artillery: 3,270
Total tanks: 2,236
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 426
Total military vehicles: 58,880
Military defense budget: $46,300,000,000 – #14 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.1656 – #5 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, South Korea has 1,592 military aircraft (including 98 attack aircraft, 315 fighter aircraft, and 807 helicopters). South Korea has 600,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 52.1 million.

1. Russia

Total artillery: 13,673
Total towed artillery: 8,505
Total self-propelled artillery: 5,168
Total tanks: 5,750
Total Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS): 3,005
Total military vehicles: 131,527
Military defense budget: $126,000,000,000 – #3 out of 145
Military strength score: 0.0788 – #2 out of 145

Separate from the ground forces, Russia has 4,292 military aircraft (including 689 attack aircraft, 833 fighter aircraft, and 1,651 helicopters). Russia has 1,320,000 active-duty personnel out of a total population of 140.8 million.

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This Country Spent Billions Building a Artillery Army 6x Bigger Than America's

Here is a look at the countries with the largest artillery armies in the world:

Why Are We Covering This?

31. Turkmenistan

30. Israel

29. Morocco

28. Indonesia

27. Belarus

26. Vietnam

25. Angola

24. Bangladesh

23. Japan

22. Thailand

21. Poland

20. Algeria

19. Romania

18. Syria

17. Finland

16. Saudi Arabia

15. Azerbaijan

14. Iraq

13. Ukraine

12. Greece

11. Taiwan

10. United States

9. North Korea

8. Egypt

7. Iran

6. Turkey

5. Pakistan

4. India

3. China

2. South Korea

1. Russia

Take Charge of Your Retirement In Just A Few Minutes (Sponsor)

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This Country Spent Billions Building a Artillery Army 6x Bigger Than America's

Here is a look at the countries with the largest artillery armies in the world:

Why Are We Covering This?

31. Turkmenistan

30. Israel

29. Morocco

28. Indonesia

27. Belarus

26. Vietnam

25. Angola

24. Bangladesh

23. Japan

22. Thailand

21. Poland

20. Algeria

19. Romania

18. Syria

17. Finland

16. Saudi Arabia

15. Azerbaijan

14. Iraq

13. Ukraine

12. Greece

11. Taiwan

10. United States

9. North Korea

8. Egypt

7. Iran

6. Turkey

5. Pakistan

4. India

3. China

2. South Korea

1. Russia

Take Charge of Your Retirement In Just A Few Minutes (Sponsor)

Latest from 24/7

How Big Is America's Defense Budget Compared to the Rest of the World?

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