25 Strongest Countries in Europe by Military Power

Published on January 22, 2023 at 6:58 pm by Habib Ur Rehman in Lists, News

In this article, we take a look at the 25 strongest countries in Europe by military power. You can skip our detailed analysis of the European military dynamics and go directly to 10 Strongest Countries in Europe by Military Power.

The countries in Europe are aggressively increasing their arms procurement and military readiness in the wake of the Ukraine war. Apart from being militarily ready, the build-up is also meant to aid Ukraine in its resistance against Russia.

In this regard, Germany is exceptionally important, since its military industry plays a crucial role in European defense. On January 20, western nations agreed to ramp up their military support for Ukraine. However, Germany has so far paused its delivery of indigenously-made Leopard-2 tanks to Ukraine.

According to the newly appointed German defense minister Boris Postrius, the decision is motivated out of a need for “risk assessment” of such a move. This, however, did not prevent other European countries like Poland, Finland and Baltic countries from moving ahead with plans to deliver their own Leopard-2 tanks to Ukraine.

Despite German hesitance on Leopard-2 deliveries, the country is set to deliver indigenously made Marder infantry vehicles and Cheetah anti-aircraft systems to Ukraine due to an agreement signed with the US in December, 2022.

Europe’s Military Preparation: Numbers

According to the European Defense Agency, European military spending stood at $231 billion in 2021, a 6% increase from the previous year. It was the seventh year of back to back growth in military spending on the continent.

The spending was at a historic low in 2014, at 1.3% of EU’s GDP. However, the Russian takeover of Crimea in the same year, followed by the Trump administration’s insistence on an increase in military contributions by other NATO members, led to a consistent increase in spending observed in the following years, aggregating at a 32% in real terms in 2021.

In June, 2022, the German lower house parliament approved a defense fund of over $100 billion that was announced in February of last year in response to the Ukrainian invasion. The fund is aimed at topping-up Germany’s regular defense budget over the course of next few years to help rebuild its military.

The fund should enable it to meet NATO’s 2% defense-spending target, which would make Germany the third biggest military spender behind the US and China. In that respect, the increase in military spending in Europe is likely to continue and may even accelerate. Current projections put forward by EDA show a growth of $76 billion in defense expenditures by 2025.

How the Defense Sector Will Benefit?

The increasing spending is boosting European arms manufacturers’ balance sheets. Companies like Dassault Aviation, Hensoldt AG and Rheinmetall AG have greatly benefited.

The announcement of the German defense fund that we have discussed above, led to 89% and 49% in trading gains for the German radar and sensor company Hensoldt AG and armor-vehicle manufacturer Rheinmetall AG respectively, in February. The French aircraft manufacturer, Dassault Aviation SE also saw gains of 11%.

As of 2022, Rheinmetall AG was reported to be increasing the production of tanks from 40,000 units per year to 240,000 units per year.

In the same year, contracts for the Eurodrone project, which is expected to reduce Europe’s reliance on Israeli drones, were signed by Germany, France, Spain and Italy. These contracts were awarded to Airbus SE (PARIS:AIR.PA) by OCCAR. Airbus SE (PARIS:AIR.PA), on the other hand, has chosen Avivo Aero, owned by the US-based General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), for the design and production of the drone’s engine.

Apart from the General Electric Company (NYSE:GE), other US defense corporations like Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) are also enhancing European defense capabilities. Its stealth aircraft – F-35 Lightning-II, is included in several European countries’ air force inventories.

In a bid to aggressively revamp its military, Germany has announced further procurement of 35 F35s from Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT) in a $14 billion deal, the first eight of which will be delivered to the country in 2026. As the west continues to rearm itself and bolster Ukrainian military support, the defense sector is expected to be an outperformer in the years to come.

Let’s now move on to the 25 strongest countries in Europe by military power.

Pixabay/Public Domain

Our Methodology

We’ve defined militarily strong European countries as ones that have advanced strategic military assets, geographical advantages, and logistical and financial capability. The last metric is important since financial capacity is a direct determinant of military capability.

For this purpose, we have first identified the top 25 European countries in the Global Firepower Index of 2023 and ranked them as such, then we have used the GDPs of these countries to rank them separately. Then we’ve averaged out the rankings for our list. For countries with the same averaged-out ranking, we’ve used their ranking in Global Firepower Index as a tiebreaker.

At discretion, we’ve discussed the size of some of the countries’ military assets, especially naval and air fleets since they are the primary components of military power.

For militarily important countries, we’ve also discussed their cyberwarfare capabilities, number of military bases around the world and space capabilities for military purposes. For this, we’ve sourced data from The Power Atlas by the European Council on Foreign Relations.

For some countries, we have also discussed military spending, and have obtained the data from the World Bank.

Here are the 25 strongest countries in Europe by military power.

25. Belarus

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 23

GDP Ranking: 24

Average Ranking: 23.5

Belarus is a close Russian ally in its war against Ukraine and is one of the strongest countries in Europe in terms of military strength. It has a global-firepower-index (GFP) score of 1.0485 and a GDP size of $68 billion as of 2021.

24. Slovakia

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 24

GDP Ranking: 22

Average Ranking: 23

Slovakia is one of the strongest European military powers, with a global-firepower-index score of 1.1789 in 2023.

23. Serbia

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 21

GDP Ranking: 25

Average Ranking: 23

Serbia is a landlocked country in Southeastern Europe. Its GFP score as of 2023, is 0.9571. Its air force is its strongest military arm, with the flagship fighter in the inventory being the Soviet-made Mig-29.

22. Bulgaria

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 22

GDP Ranking: 23

Average Ranking: 22

Bulgaria has a global-firepower-index score of 0.9757 as of 2023. Its GDP size is over $84 billion as of 2022. Its ground forces are augmented by a total of 90 soviet-made T72M1 and T72M2 battle tanks. Its air force is better modernized, with fighters like Mig-29, Su-25 and F-16 Fighting Falcon.

F-16 was designed and manufactured by General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD), a company owned and operated by Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE:LMT). General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) manufactured the jet in 1975 when the US air force was in need of a highly manuverable yet cost-effective fighter.

21. Hungary

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 20

GDP Ranking: 21

Average Ranking: 20.5

Hungary has a GDP of $182 billion as of 2021, which enables the country to spend considerably on its military infrastructure, making it one of the strongest countries in Europe by military power. Its GFP index score is 0.8643 in 2023.

20. Belgium

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 25

GDP Ranking: 12

Average Ranking: 18.5

Belgium is one of the biggest economies on the continent, making it one of the strongest countries in Europe by military power as well. Its GDP, as of 2021, is $0.6 trillion. The country has steadily increased military spending over the past two years. In 2021, it spent 1.1% of its GDP on defense.

19. Finland

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 19

GDP Ranking: 15

Average Ranking: 17

Finland is located in Northern Europe. It has a 2023 GFP index score of 0.8099. The country has one of the most advanced militaries in Europe, owing to its procurement of F/A-18s and F35s.

18. Czech Republic

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 17

GDP Ranking: 16

Average Ranking: 16.5

The Czech Republic is located in Central Europe. It has one of the strongest militaries in Europe, which is in large part, armed by the indigenous defense manufacturers, including Česká Zbrojovka (CZ), Aero Vodochody and Tatra among others.

17. Romania

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 16

GDP Ranking: 17

Average Ranking: 16.5

Romania has a GDP size of $284 billion as of 2021 and it spent 2% of it on its defense in the same year, making it one of the strongest countries in Europe by military power.

16. Denmark

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 18

GDP Ranking: 14

Average Ranking: 16

Denmark is a Scandinavian country with one of the most powerful military infrastructures in Europe. In 2023, it has a global-firepower-index score of 0.8011. The country has 115 aircraft in its inventory, with four F-35s and 33 F-16s.

Denmark is home to indigienous defense companies like Danish Aerotech A/S and also hosts foreign defense companies like Lockheed Martin Corporation and General Electric Company (NYSE:GE). The country’s army has had a history of contracts with General Dynamics Corporation (NYSE:GD) for Armored Personnel Carriers (APCs).

15. Portugal

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 14

GDP Ranking: 18

Average Ranking: 16

Portugal is located in Southern Europe. In 2021, defense expenditures comprised 2.2% of Portugal’s GDP of $254 billion. Its flagship fighter aircraft is the F-16 fighting falcon, 28 of which are in service. Its navy operates two tridente-class submarines, five frigates and two corvettes.

14. Greece

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 10

GDP Ranking: 19

Average Ranking: 14.5

Greece has been struggling due to economic mismanagement but the country still has a huge GDP of $215 billion as of 2021. It has one of the largest armor units in Europe, with nearly 1,300 tanks. The Hellenic Navy boasts 63 fleet units, with 11 submarines and 13 frigates.

13. Ukraine

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 6

GDP Ranking: 20

Average Ranking: 13

Ukraine has a global-firepower-index score of 0.2516 in 2023. The country has been holding its own against one of the most powerful militaries on the planet in its ongoing war.

12. Switzerland

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 15

GDP Ranking: 9

Average Ranking: 12

When it comes to the Swiss military, the air force is its strongest arm, with a fleet of 174 aircraft. Out of these, 31% are fighters, with the top fighting aircraft being F/A-18C, 25 of which are in service. It spent 0.7% of its $0.8 trillion GDP on defense in 2021.

11. Norway

Global Firepower Index Ranking: 11

GDP Ranking: 13

Average Ranking: 12

Norway is one of the strongest countries in Europe by military power. It currently operates 27 units of F-35 stealth aircrafts with more to come. The country is expected to have a fleet of 52 F-35s by 2025.

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