New Delhi: India is among the world’s top military powers. But where does it exactly stand?
According to defence website Military Direct, India ranks fourth.
A report released on Sunday says that China has the world’s strongest military force, followed by the USA and Russia at No 2 and 3, respectively. France has been ranked fifth.
“The USA, despite their enormous military budgets, comes in 2nd place with 74 points, followed by Russia with 69, India at 61 and then France with 58. The UK just about makes the top 10, coming in 9th place with a score of 43,” says the study.
China tops with 82 points on a scale of 100.
The report explains that ‘Ultimate military strength index’ has been calculated taking into consideration several factors like budgets, number of inactive and active military personnel, total air, sea, land and nuclear resources, average salaries and weight of equipment.
“Based on these scores, which account for budgets, men, and things like air and navy capacity, it does suggest that China would come out as top dog in a hypothetical super conflict,” the study observes.
In terms of military spending, the USA tops with a defence budget of $732 billion per year, while China is second with $261 billion and India third at $71 billion.
China would win by sea, USA by air and Russia by land in a hypothetical conflict, it adds.
“USA wins in an aerial war with 14,141 total airships vs Russia with 4,682 and China with 3,587. The Russian Federation wins in a land war with 54,866 vehicles vs USA with 50,326 and China with 41,641, while China wins in a sea war with 406 ships vs Russia with 278 and the USA or India with 202,” the report elaborates.
