Largest Militaries in Middle East
Overview
Which country has the largest military force in Middle East?
The country with the largest military force in Middle East is Iran with a force strength of 1,000,000 personnel. At second and third, are Israel with a 642,500-strong military and Iraq with a military force of 341,000 personnel.
In comparison, the average size of the military forces in Middle East is around 221,690.7 military personnel.
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DEFENSE SPENDING
Defense Budget. Saudi Arabia has the highest military budget in Middle East at US$61,867M . Average size of defense budgets among countries in Middle East stand at US$12,317.8M.
Percentage of GDP on Defense. Oman's defence budget makes up 8.80% of its GDP - the highest in Middle East. On average, countries in Middle East spend %4.7 of their GDPs on defense.
FORCE STRUCTURE
Active Forces. Iran has the largest active military in Middle East, with 610,000 personnel. Average size of active military forces among countries in Middle East stand at 126,373.3 personnel.
Reserve Forces. Israel has the largest reserve military in Middle East, with 465,000 personnel. On average, countries in Middle East maintain a reserve strength of 60,246.7 personnel.
Paramilitary Forces. Iraq has the largest paramilitary force in Middle East, with 148,000 personnel. The average paramilitary force size in Middle East is 35,070.7 personnel.
Total Military Force Per Capita. Israel has the highest total military per capita at 76.3 per 1000 in population - the highest in Middle East. The average total military force per capita for countries in Middle East is around 15.1 per 1000 in population.
BATTLE EQUIPMENT
Naval Fleet. Iran has the largest naval fleet in Middle East, with 27 vessels. Average size of naval fleet among countries in Middle East stand at 4.2 vessels.
Submarines. Iran has the most submarines in Middle East at 21 subs. Average size of submarine fleet among countries in Middle East stand at 1.7 subs.
Air Force. Israel has the largest air force at 440 planes in Middle East. Average size of air force among countries in Middle East stand at 138.4 planes.
Battle Tanks. Iran has most number of battle tanks in Middle East at 1,663 tanks. Average number of tanks among countries in Middle East stand at 552.2 tanks.
These are the countries in Middle East with the largest military forces:
Iran.
Iran has the third-highest defence budget in Middle East. Iran allocates about 2.30% of its GDP (estimated at US$12,623M) for its defence budget.
Iran has the largest military force in Middle East. Iran has a military that is composed of 610,000 active personnel (largest in Middle East), 350,000 in reserve and 40,000 from paramilitary forces, totalling 1,000,000 or 12 military personnel per 1000 in population.
Iran's battle tank force is the largest in Middle East. On land, Iran has a mobile force of 1,663 tanks. For aerial defence, Iran has an air force of 337 military aircrafts and 62 attack helicopters.
Iran has the largest naval fleet in Middle East. Iran has a naval fleet of 27 vessels, including 21 non-nuclear submarines.
The country with the second-highest defence budget in Middle East is Israel. The defence budget of Israel is estimated at US$20,465M at around 5.30% of its GDP.
Israel has the second-largest military force in Middle East. Israel has a military of 642,500 personnel, with 169,500 active, 465,000 in reserve and 8,000 from paramilitary forces, making up 76.3 military personnel per 1000 in population. Its per-capita military is the highest in Middle East.
Israel's battle tank force is the second-largest in Middle East. On land, Israel has a mobile force of 1,560 tanks. For aerial defence, Israel has an air force of 440 military aircrafts and 84 attack helicopters.
Israel has a naval fleet of 6 vessels, including 3 non-nuclear submarines.
Saudi Arabia's defence budget is the highest in Middle East. The defence budget of Saudi Arabia is estimated at US$61,867M at around 8% of its GDP. Its percentage of GDP allocated to defence spending is the second-highest globally.
With a 251,500-strong military, Saudi Arabia has a per-capita ratio of 7.6 military personnel per 1000 in population. Its total military consists of 227,000 active personnel (second-largest in Middle East) and 24,500 from paramilitary forces.
On land, Saudi Arabia has a mobile force of 600 tanks. For aerial defence, Saudi Arabia has an air force of 313 military aircrafts and 85 attack helicopters.
The naval fleet also possesses numerous warships, including 4 frigates, 3 destroyers and 4 corvettes.
Jordan's defence expenditure is estimated to be US$2,032M (4.70% of its GDP).
Jordan has a military that is composed of 100,500 active personnel, 65,000 in reserve and 15,000 from paramilitary forces, totalling 180,500 or 17.3 military personnel per 1000 in population. Its per-capita military is the second-highest in Middle East.
Jordan has the third-largest battle tank force in Middle East. On land, Jordan has a mobile force of 1,323 tanks. For aerial defence, Jordan has an air force of 134 military aircrafts and 126 attack helicopters.
Oman.
Oman's defence expenditure is estimated to be US$6,730M (8.80% of its GDP). Its percentage of GDP allocated to defence spending is the highest in the world.
Oman has a military of 47,000 personnel, with 42,600 active and 4,400 from paramilitary forces, making up 13.5 military personnel per 1000 in population.
On land, Oman has a mobile force of 117 tanks. For aerial defence, Oman has an air force of 44 military aircrafts and 15 attack helicopters.
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