NATO & Russia are flexing their military might right next to each other: the 25 most powerful militaries in Europe
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By Christopher Woody,Business Insider
NATO member and partner forces are in Norway for a sprawling military exercise called Trident Juncture — the largest since the Cold War, officials have said.
Russia is not happy with NATO's robust presence next to its territory and has decided to put on its own show of force.
From November 1 to November 3, Russian ships will carry out rocket drills in the Norwegian Sea, west of activities related to Trident Juncture, which runs from October 25 to November 7.
The exercises come at a time of heightened tension in Europe, home to some of the world's most capable armed forces, based on the 2018 military strength ranking compiled by Global Firepower.
The ranking aims to level the playing between smaller countries with technical advantages and larger, less-sophisticated countries.
Additional factors — geography, logistical capabilities, natural resources, and industrial capacity — are taken into account, as are things like diversity of weapons and assets, national development, and manpower.
NATO members, 27 of which are European, also get a boost, as the alliance is designed to share resources and military support. The US military has a massive presence in Europe — including its largest base outside the US— but isn't included here as the US isn't part of Europe.
Below, you can see the 25 most powerful militaries in Europe.
25. Belgium (Overall ranking: 68)
Belgium air force helicopter Alouette III takes off from BNS Godetia for a tactical flight over the fjords in support of an amphibious exercise during NATO's Trident Juncture exercise. NATO Photo By WO FRAN C.Valverde
Power Index rating: 1.0885
Total population: 11,491,346
Total military personnel: 38,800
Total aircraft strength: 164
Fighter aircraft: 45
Combat tanks: 0
Total naval assets: 17
Defense budget: $5.085 billion
24. Portugal (Overall ranking: 63)
A Portuguese sniper team identifies targets during the range-estimation event of the Europe Best Sniper Team Competition at 7th Army Training Command’s Grafenwoehr Training Area, July 29, 2018. US Army/Spc. Emily Houdershieldt
Power Index rating: 1.0035
Total population: 10,839,514
Total military personnel: 268,500
Total aircraft strength: 93
Fighter aircraft: 24
Combat tanks: 133
Total naval assets: 41
Defense budget: $3.8 billion
23. Slovakia (Overall ranking: 62)
Slovak soldiers report to their commander during the opening ceremony of Slovak Shield 2018 at Lest Military Training Center, September 23, 2018. US Army/1st Lt. Caitlin Sweet
Power Index rating: 0.9998
Total population: 5,445,829
Total military personnel: 14,675
Total aircraft strength: 49
Fighter aircraft: 18
Combat tanks: 22
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $1.025 billion
22. Austria (Overall ranking: 61)
Austrian soldiers load gear onto their packhorses before hiking to a high-angle range during the International Special Training Centre High-Angle/Urban Course at the Hochfilzen Training Area, Austria, September 12, 2018. US Army
Power Index rating: 0.9953
Total population: 8,754,413
Total military personnel: 170,000
Total aircraft strength: 124
Fighter aircraft: 15
Combat tanks: 56
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $3.22 billion
21. Bulgaria (Overall ranking: 60)
A Bulgarian army tank crew maneuvers a T-72 tank during an exercise with US soldiers from the 1st Cavalry Division's 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team at the Novo Selo Training Area, September 15, 2018. US Army National Guard/Sgt. Jamar Marcel Pugh
Power Index rating: 0.9839
Total population: 7,101,510
Total military personnel: 52,650
Total aircraft strength: 73
Fighter aircraft: 20
Combat tanks: 531
Total naval assets: 29
Defense budget: $700 million
20. Finland (Overall ranking: 59)
Standing NATO Maritime Group One trains with Finnish fast-attack missile boat FNS Hanko during a passing exercise in the Baltic Sea, August 28, 2017. NATO/FRAN CPO Christian Valverde
Power Index rating: 0.9687
Total population: 5,518,371
Total military personnel: 262,050
Total aircraft strength: 153
Fighter aircraft: 55
Combat tanks: 160
Total naval assets: 270
Defense budget: $3.66 billion
19. Hungary (Overall ranking: 57)
Cpl. Cedric Jackson, a US soldier from the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team of Army's 1st Infantry Division, assists a Hungarian soldier in applying tape to secure a fluid-administration tube to a simulated casualty during a combat life-saver course led by US troops in Tata, Hungary, December 2017. US Army/2nd Lt. Gabor Horvath
Power Index rating: 0.9153
Total population: 9,850,845
Total military personnel: 77,250
Total aircraft strength: 35
Fighter aircraft: 12
Combat tanks: 32
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $1.04 billion
18. Denmark (Overall ranking: 54)
Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite and Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen visit the Danish air force team during its NATO air-policing mission in Siauliai, Lithuania, January 15, 2018. REUTERS/Ints Kalnins
Power Index rating: 0.9084
Total population: 5,605,948
Total military personnel: 75,150
Total aircraft strength: 113
Fighter aircraft: 33
Combat tanks: 57
Total naval assets: 90
Defense budget: $4.44 billion
17. Belarus (Overall ranking: 41)
A Belarussian Sukhoi Su-25 jet lands on the M1/E30 road during military exercises near the village of Krysovo, southwest of Minsk, September 23, 2015. REUTERS/Vasily Fedosenko
Power Index rating: 0.7315
Total population: 9,549,747
Total military personnel: 401,250
Total aircraft strength: 202
Fighter aircraft: 43
Combat tanks: 515
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $725 million
16. Romania (Overall ranking: 40)
A Romanian soldier adjusts her helmet during weapons training with US Marines during exercise Spring Storm at Capu Midia, Romania. Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo
Power Index rating: 0.7205
Total population: 21,529,967
Total military personnel: 177,750
Total aircraft strength: 135
Fighter aircraft: 34
Combat tanks: 827
Total naval assets: 48
Defense budget: $2.19 billion
15. Netherlands (Overall ranking: 38)
Dutch soldiers rest after a battle display at the military training ground in Rukla, Lithuania, August 11, 2017. Reuters
Power Index rating: 0.7113
Total population: 17,084,719
Total military personnel: 53,205
Total aircraft strength: 165
Fighter aircraft: 61
Combat tanks: 0
Total naval assets: 56
Defense budget: $9.84 billion
14. Norway (Overall ranking: 36)
A Norwegian soldier takes aim during Trident Juncture 18 near Røros, Norway, October 2018. NATO
Power Index rating: 0.6784
Total population: 5,320,045
Total military personnel: 72,500
Total aircraft strength: 128
Fighter aircraft: 49
Combat tanks: 52
Total naval assets: 62
Defense budget: $7 billion
13. Switzerland (Overall ranking: 34)
A member of a Swiss army honor guard drinks water before the arrival of Belgian King Philippe in Bern, Switzerland, June 22, 2017. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann
Power Index rating: 0.6634
Total population: 8,236,303
Total military personnel: 171,000
Total aircraft strength: 167
Fighter aircraft: 54
Combat tanks: 134
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $4.83 billion
12. Sweden (Overall ranking: 31)
Swedish air force Pvt. Salem Mimic, left, and Pvt. Andreas Frojd, right, both with Counter Special Forces Platoon, provide security for US Air Force airmen and aircraft on the flight line at Kallax Air Base, Sweden, during Exercise Trident Juncture 18, Oct. 26, 2018. U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Jonathan Snyder
Power Index rating: 0.6071
Total population: 9,960,487
Total military personnel: 43,875
Total aircraft strength: 206
Fighter aircraft: 72
Combat tanks: 120
Total naval assets: 63
Defense budget: $6.2 billion
11. Czech Republic (Overall ranking: 30)
Czech service members participate in a parade marking the Czech centennial, observed by US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, in Prague, Czech Republic, October 28, 2018.Defense Department/Lisa Ferdinando
Power Index rating: 0.5969
Total population: 10,674,723
Total military personnel: 29,050
Total aircraft strength: 103
Fighter aircraft: 12
Combat tanks: 123
Total naval assets: 0
Defense budget: $2.6 billion
10. Ukraine (Overall ranking: 29)
Ukrainian troops from Donbass battalion train with small arms outside Mariupol, Ukraine, on March 13, 2015. Getty
Power Index rating: 0.5383
Total population: 44,033,874
Total military personnel: 1,182,000
Total aircraft strength: 240
Fighter aircraft: 39
Combat tanks: 2,214
Total naval assets: 25
Defense budget: $4.88 billion
9. Greece (Overall ranking: 28)
Greek Defense Minister Panos Kammenos, left speaks with Greek soldiers in front of a Greek flag as he attends a reservist exercise on the eastern island of Ikaria, Greece, April 4, 2018. Associated Press
Power Index rating: 0.5255
Total population: 10,768,477
Total military personnel: 413,750
Total aircraft strength: 567
Fighter aircraft: 189
Combat tanks: 1,345
Total naval assets: 115
Defense budget: $6.54 billion
8. Poland (Overall ranking: 22)
A commander instructs a recruit during a 16-day basic training for Poland's Territorial Defense Forces, at a shooting range near Siedlce, Poland, December 7, 2017. Reuters
Power Index rating: 0.4276
Total population: 38,476,269
Total military personnel: 184,650
Total aircraft strength: 466
Fighter aircraft: 99
Combat tanks: 1,065
Total naval assets: 83
Defense budget: $9.36 billion
7. Spain (Overall ranking: 19)
A sniper and spotter from the Spanish Lepanto Battalion line up their target near Folldal during Exercise Trident Juncture, using the .50 caliber Barrett and the .338 caliber Accuracy sniper rifles, firing at targets over 1,000 meters away. Photo by 1st German/Netherlands Corps
Power Index rating: 0.4079
Total population: 48,958,159
Total military personnel: 174,700
Total aircraft strength: 524
Fighter aircraft: 122
Combat tanks: 327
Total naval assets: 46 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $11.6 billion
6. Italy (Overall ranking: 11)
An Italian F-35A fighter jet with special tail markings Italian Air Force
Power Index rating: 0.2565
Total population: 62,137,802
Total military personnel: 267,500
Total aircraft strength: 828
Fighter aircraft: 90
Combat tanks: 200
Total naval assets: 143 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $37.7 billion
5. Germany (Overall ranking: 10)
A German Bundeswehr armed forces recruit of the Mechanized Infantry Battalion 411 takes position during a drill at a military training area in Viereck, Germany, August 8, 2018. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch
Power Index rating: 0.2461
Total population: 80,594,017
Total military personnel: 208,641
Total aircraft strength: 714
Fighter aircraft: 94
Combat tanks: 432
Total naval assets: 81
Defense budget: $45.2 billion
4. Turkey (Overall ranking: 9)
Turkish troops take control of Bursayah hill, which separates the Kurdish-held enclave of Afrin from the Turkey-controlled town of Azaz, Syria, January 28, 2018. Associated Press
Power Index rating: 0.2216
Total population: 80,845,215
Total military personnel: 710,565
Total aircraft strength: 1,056
Fighter aircraft: 207
Combat tanks: 2,446
Total naval assets: 194
Defense budget: $10.2 billion
3. United Kingdom (Overall ranking: 6)
British troops arrive to Hoek van Holland to travel by land to Norway, as part of a NATO military exercise, in Hoek van Holland, Netherlands, October 10, 2018.REUTERS/Piroschka van de Wouw
Power Index rating: 0.1917
Total population: 64,769,452
Total military personnel: 279,230
Total aircraft strength: 832
Fighter aircraft: 103
Combat tanks: 227
Total naval assets: 76 (two aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $50 billion
2. France (Overall ranking: 5)
French sailors watch the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush as it transits alongside the French navy frigate Forbin, October 25, 2017. US Navy/Mass Comm. Specialist 3rd Class Matt Matlage
Power Index rating: 0.1869
Total population: 67,106,161
Total military personnel: 388,635
Total aircraft strength: 1,262
Fighter aircraft: 299
Combat tanks: 406
Total naval assets: 118 (four aircraft carriers)
Defense budget: $40 billion
1. Russia (Overall ranking: 2)
Russian troops participating in the Zapad 2017 exercises in Belarus and Russia. Russian Ministry of Defense
Power Index rating: 0.0841
Total population: 142,257,519
Total military personnel: 3,586,128
Total aircraft strength: 3,914
Fighter aircraft: 818
Combat tanks: 20,300
Total naval assets: 352 (one aircraft carrier)
Defense budget: $47 billion
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