ISLAMABAD: The 2025 Global Firepower (GFP) Index has ranked Pakistan among the top 15 global military powers, positioning the country 12th out of 145 countries considered for the annual review.
Pakistan’s arch-rival and nuclear-armed neighbour, India has been ranked higher at 4th place.
“The GFP Index denotes Pakistan as a top 15 global military power,” the GFP stated on its website. “For 2025, Pakistan is ranked 12th, reflecting its strategic military capabilities.
In terms of specific military strengths, Pakistan ranked 7th globally for air fleet strength, while India was placed 4th. For naval power, Pakistan was ranked 27th, with India ahead at 6th position.
”The GFP Index highlighted that while both nations continue to grow their military capabilities, India maintains a stronger position in certain areas, such as naval and air fleet strength.
The GFP Index, which assesses military strength based on over 60 individual factors, including military units, financial standing, logistics capability, and geography, placed Pakistan with a PowerIndex (PwrIndx) score of 0.2513. A perfect score is 0.0000
PAF seventh most powerful air forces globally
Earlier, a report published on a globalfirepower.com website ranked Pakistan Air Force (PAF) as the seventh in the world’s most powerful air forces based on their aircraft inventory, including fighter jets, helicopters, and support aircraft.
According to the report, Pakistan operates 1,434 fighter jets, helicopters, and support aircraft. Egypt, Turkey, and France round out the top ten, with respective inventories of 1,080, 1,069, and 972 aircrafts.
The report highlights the evolving landscape of air power, with countries like China rapidly advancing their technological capabilities, while others, such as Russia, face challenges in maintaining their fleets due to ongoing conflicts.
The United States was identified as the strongest air force globally, followed by Russia and China in second and third places, respectively. India ranked fourth, South Korea fifth, and Japan sixth.
The report noted that the US Air Force is unrivalled, with a fleet that exceeds the combined air capabilities of Russia, China, India, South Korea, and Japan.
It operates 5,737 helicopters, 1,854 fighter jets, and 3,722 support aircrafts, with an annual budget of $800 billion, accounting for nearly 40% of global military spending.
Russia, with one-third of US air power, operates 1,554 helicopters, 809 fighter jets, and 610 support aircrafts. However, it has suffered losses, with 220 aircraft destroyed since the onset of the Ukraine war in 2022.
China, ranked third, has been investing heavily in modernising its air force and recently added its sixth-generation fighter jet to its fleet. The country is also working on supersonic aircraft. India, South Korea, and Japan follow with 2,296, 1,576, and 1,459 aircrafts, respectively.
