Azerbaijani Armed Forces strengthen position in world ranking

By Azernews

By Rashid Shirinov

Azerbaijani Armed Forces continue to improve position among other countries in terms of their military power. The country ranked the 53rd out of 136 countries in the new Military Strength Ranking, compiled by Global Firepower survey center.

Thus, Azerbaijan has risen by five places compared to 2017. The ranking notes that the total military personnel of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces includes 374,500 people, while 3,750,000 of the population are fit for service.

The country’s Armed Forces include 520 combat tanks, 1,590 armored fighting vehicles, 359 artillery mounts and 191 rocket launchers, the ranking says. It also shows that Azerbaijan’s Air Force has 18 fighter aircraft, 29 attack, 83 transport and 19 trainer aircraft, as well as 93 helicopters at its disposal.

As for the positions of Azerbaijan’s neighbors in the ranking, Russia ranks 2nd, Turkey ­– 9th, Iran – 13th, Georgia – 82th, and Armenia is the 84th.

The U.S., Russia and China head the ranking, followed by India, France, United Kingdom, South Korea, Japan, Turkey and Germany as the Top-10 nations having the strongest armed forces.

The ranking is based on more than 55 factors, which help determine a country’s final PowerIndex score. It does not rely solely on the total number of weapons available to a country but rather focuses on weapon diversity to provide a better balance of firepower available. Factors also include logistical flexibility, natural resources, local industry, geographical factors, etc.

The Azerbaijani Army, which today is considered the most modern army in the Caucasus, consists of Air Force and Air Defense Forces, the Navy, and the Land Forces.

The skills and combat readiness of the Azerbaijani army are growing year by year, as the country’s Armed Forces regularly conduct military exercises. The Azerbaijani army is supplied with modern weapons and technical equipment for maintaining a high level of combat capability.

The army building process is of particular importance for Azerbaijan, as twenty percent of the country's territory is under Armenian occupation and the country is in a state of war with Armenia.