The Global Firepower rankings for 2024 maintain that the United States possesses the world's most powerful military, followed by Russia and China. India secured the fourth position in the global military strength index, which assessed 145 countries. Notably, Pakistan is ranked at number 9, while Bhutan is identified as having the least powerful military worldwide.
The index considers approximately 60 factors, encompassing troop numbers, military equipment, financial stability, geographic location, and available resources. In the assessment, India obtains a Power Index score of 0.1023, with a score of 0.0000 deemed 'perfect.' Comparatively, the United States holds a Power Index score of 0.0699, Russia at 0.0702, and China at 0.0706.
Remarkably, South Korea surpassed the UK, securing the fifth position as the most powerful country globally in terms of military strength, according to the Global Firepower rankings. Additionally, GFP conducted an analysis of the defence budgets for the 145 countries under assessment.
The US spends the most money on its military with a defence budget of $831 billion. It's followed by China ($227 billion), Russia ($107 billion) and India ($74 million). Among the top five defence spenders, the US accounts for 63.3% of the total expenditure share.