In this article, we take a look at the 15 most powerful countries in Asia in 2023. For more Asian countries, go to the 5 Most Powerful Countries in Asia in 2023.
The 21st century is frequently referred to as the Asian century. According to McKinsey, Asia could be responsible for more than 50% of the global GDP by near the middle of the 21st century.
Asia has emerged as a significant global power in the modern day, with its economic, political, and cultural influence felt around the world. As the world’s largest continent, home to over 60% of the world’s population, and some of the fastest-growing economies, Asia is poised to play an increasingly significant role in shaping the future of the world.
One of the most significant ways in which Asia is defining the 21st century is through its economic power. The region has experienced unprecedented economic growth in recent decades, driven by countries such as China, India, Japan, and South Korea.
In many ways, Asia has become the manufacturing hub of the world, since countries like China, Vietnam, Taiwan have some of the biggest share in the global manufacturing output. In the manufacturing sector, Asia’s greatest competitive edge is in the semiconductors’ industry, with the region accounting for 75% of the world’s chip manufacturing industries.
Taiwan’s TSMC alone dominates the global foundry industry, with a market share of 60% as of the last quarter of 2022, making Asia central at the world stage.
In terms of military strength, Asia is home to four of the top five most powerful militaries in the world, with three of them being nuclear powers. In addition, two of the five permanent members of the UN security council with veto power are also Asian, concentrating significant political power on the continent.
Asia is also culturally strong, and is home to many of the globally popular cuisines, arts and philosophies. China is known for Confucianism and Taoism, two of the widely regarded ancient philosophies in the world.
The Chinese cuisine, with dishes like Manchurian and Chow Mein, is also found on the menus of restaurants all around the world. India, like China, also boasts significant soft power around the world through its globally popular bollywood cinema, ancient philosophies like Buddhism and Indian cuisine.
Asian Corporate Power
Asian companies are adding an average of $19 trillion in the global economy each year. Prominent of these companies include Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM) and Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU).
Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA) controls more than half of the online retail market in China, and it’s one of the biggest e-commerce marketplaces in the world, for both wholesale and retail. Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM), on the other hand, is a Japanese car manufacturer with a global market share of 11.5% in the automobile industry.
Lastly, Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU) is a Chinese technology company, with a 65% share in the country’s search engine market as of 2023. There are many other huge companies headquartered in Asia, other than Alibaba Group Holding Limited (NYSE:BABA), Toyota Motor Corporation (NYSE:TM) and Baidu, Inc. (NASDAQ:BIDU).
Our Methodology
We’ve defined ‘most powerful countries in Asia in 2023’ as ones which have huge economies, strong militaries, and significant political influence. In this regard, we’ve ranked them based on averaged out results of their rankings amongst themselves in GDP size, military strength and political influence.
For military strength, we consulted the Global Firepower Index of 2023, and ranked Asian countries amongst themselves based on their rankings in the index.
For countries with the same averaged-out rankings, we’ve used their rankings in GDP size as the tiebreaker. We’ve sourced the number of primary military assets operated by the militaries of these countries from the global firepower index.
Note: Taiwan did not make it to the list of political influence index owing to political reasons. However, Taiwan exerts significant influence in global affairs. Therefore, we’ve ranked it solely on the basis of economic and military power.
Further, we’ve included transcontinental countries in our list like Russia and Turkiye for geopolitical and geoeconomic considerations, since these countries are more relevant in these terms to Asia than Europe.
Here are the 15 most powerful countries in Asia in 2023.
15. Vietnam
GDP Ranking: 18
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 11
Political Influence Index Ranking: 15
Average Ranking: 14.6
Vietnam is located in Southeast Asia and is one of the most powerful Asian countries as of 2023. It is frequently regarded as one of the next major manufacturing powerhouses as supply chains shift from China. In this respect, Vietnam is expected to significantly multiply its GDP in the next 30 years.
Vietnam also has considerable political influence around the world as well as in the region. Lastly, the country operates a huge military. When it comes to important military assets, the Vietnamese military operates 1,829 tanks, 223 aircraft and 91 naval vessels.
14. United Arab Emirates
GDP Ranking: 13
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 22
Political Influence Index Ranking: 8
Average Ranking: 14.3
The United Arab Emirates is particularly powerful in terms of GDP and political influence, all thanks to its vast reserves of oil wealth. It has a 4% share in the global oil production, which gives the country considerable leverage in global affairs.
UAE operates a rather huge military for its size. By numbers, the military operates 274 tanks, 565 aircraft, including 99 fighters, and 49 naval vessels. The UAE is also an influential member of OPEC.
13. Iran
GDP Ranking: 19
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 9
Political Influence Index Ranking: 14
Average Ranking: 14
Iran is located in Southwest Asia, and as of 2023, it is one of the most powerful countries in Asia, especially in terms of military power and political influence in the middle eastern region. Iran’s economy is largely based on oil production, with the country accounting for 12% of the global oil reserves.
Iran also boasts the 12th biggest military in the world. Its military boasts 3,000 strategic missiles, with some of the intercontinental ballistic missiles having a maximum range of 2,000 Kilometers. Some of its other military assets include over 4,000 tanks, 541 aircraft, including 196 fighters, and 42 naval vessels.
12. Singapore
GDP Ranking: 14
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 15
Political Influence Index Ranking: 10
Average Ranking: 13
Singapore is one of the most advanced countries in Asia. It has a huge knowledge-based economy, which makes Singapore influential in terms of global output of knowledge-and-technology-intensive industries.
Singapore maintains a sizable military, which operates 32 naval vessels, 248 aircraft, including 100 fighters and 170 tanks as of 2023.
11. Thailand
GDP Ranking: 10
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 14
Political Influence Index Ranking: 11
Average Ranking: 11.6
Thailand is located in Southeast Asia, and has a GDP of $0.5 billion as of 2021. Apart from tourism and agriculture, manufacturing also accounts for a significant share in the Thai economy, with the country gaining 2% from the lost Chinese share of US exports in 2019, as noted by RaboBank. Thailand also has a strong military, with 488 aircraft, including 73 fighters, 587 tanks and 62 naval vessels, as of 2023.
10. Taiwan
GDP Ranking: 9
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 13
Average Ranking: 11
Taiwan is one of the strongest economies in Asia, with a GDP size close to $1 trillion as of 2023. Taiwan is the semiconductor powerhouse of the world, with its TSMC alone controlling 60% of the global foundry market as of Q4, 2022.
Taiwan is also hugely invested in its security. In terms of primary assets its military operates, there are 737 aircraft, including 285 fighter jets, over 1,000 tanks and 75 naval vessels.
Taiwan is also the third biggest recipient of the share of lost Chinese exports to the US in 2019, behind Vietnam and Mexico, receiving a 10% share of the shifted supply chains.
9. Israel
GDP Ranking: 11
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 10
Political Influence Index Ranking: 5
Average Ranking: 8.6
Israel is one of the strongest countries in Asia in 2023. It has a huge knowledge-based economy and is a frontier country when it comes to research and development. It is also one of the most advanced countries in agriculture, and in the wake of the looming agricultural disaster, due to degrading land and increasing population, Israel is expected to become further influential in the domain.
Israel is at a disadvantage when it comes to strategic depth, and owing to a hostile neighborhood, it has made up for that by advancing its military strength. The IDF has 601 aircraft in stock, with 241 of them being fighters, including a fleet of more than 30 fifth generation F35 stealth fighters. The land forces operate over 2,000 tank units, and the navy operates 57 vessels.
8. Saudi Arabia
GDP Ranking: 8
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 12
Political Influence Index Ranking: 6
Average Ranking: 8.6
Saudi Arabia has an 11% share in global oil production, the second highest in the world after the US. It is also the most influential member of OPEC. On top of that, Saudi Arabia owns 45% of the public US debt among Arab countries, giving it considerable leverage in global affairs.
Saudi Arabia has also rapidly modernized its military in the wake of the ongoing war in Yemen. It is among the top 10 countries spending the most on their militaries as a share of their GDPs. The kingdom’s military operates 897 aircraft, with 283 of them being fighter jets, over 1,000 tank units and 50 naval vessels.
7. Indonesia
GDP Ranking: 6
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 8
Political Influence Index Ranking: 12
Average Ranking: 8.6
Indonesia is one of the biggest economies in Asia. Its economy is highly diversified into several sectors like natural resources, manufacturing and services, and as of 2022, Indonesia’s GDP size stands at $1.38 trillion. Indonesia’s military is also huge, with 237 naval vessels, 314 tank units and 466 military aircraft.
6. Turkiye
GDP Ranking: 7
Global Firepower Index Ranking: 7
Political Influence Index Ranking: 9
Average Ranking: 7.6
Turkiye is a transcontinental country located on the crossroads of Asia and Europe. Being a member of NATO and G20, Turkiye has a significant share in global power. Its military operates 1,065 aircraft, 2,229 tanks and 71 naval ships as of 2023.
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Disclosure: none. 15 Most Powerful Countries in Asia in 2023 is originally published on Insider Monkey.