Military

The 5 most powerful armies in the world

Battlefields are constantly evolving, leading countries around the world to pump hundreds of billions of dollars each year into their armed forces in a race to develop the most advanced training, technology and weaponry.

As of 2020, Global Firepower, a website that tracks military strength, says the following five armies are the most powerful, based on a rank given to them after looking at how they compare in categories “ranging from military might and financials to logistical capability and geography”:

5) Japan

With an estimated active military personnel of 247,160, this Asian country only has a fraction of the headcount that volatile neighbor North Korea has, but makes up for it with its updated weaponry.

Japan has 152 special mission aircraft – more than any country in the world other than the U.S., according to Global Firepower’s statistics – and a formidable Navy fleet that contains 40 destroyers...