Russia-Ukraine war: Military strengths of Kyiv, Kremlin, US and UK analyzed

Russia on Thursday launched an offensive on Ukraine with a series of missile strikes on cities and military bases, followed by an assault on the ground by deploying forces from several areas in the east; from the southern region of Crimea and from Belarus to the north. Explosions have been reported in multiple cities, as Vladimir Putin-led Russia looks to flex its muscles in terms of its armed forces. Here's a comparison of the military size of Ukraine, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

How big is Ukraine's army?

According to Global Fire Power, Ukraine ranks 22nd in the list of most powerful countries militarily. The Ukrainian military has around 2 lakh active-duty military personnel. The number of paramilitary forces stands at 50,000. The eastern European country claims a naval fleet strength of 38 and 318 military aircraft, including 69 fighter aircraft and 112 helicopters. 

Coming to the country's power on land, it has 12,303 armoured vehicles and 2,596 tanks. Amid Russia's invasion, Ukraine has urged its nationals to join the military and fight for the country. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that people would be provided weapons as long as they had ID.

How strong is Russia's army?

Russia is the second-largest military in the world with 8.50 lakh active personnel. The number of paramilitary forces stands at 2.50 lakh. Moscow is listed as having 4,173 aircraft, including 772 fighter aircraft and 1,543 helicopters.

In terms of the country's power on land, Kremlin has 30,122 armoured vehicles and 12,420 tanks. Russia's naval fleet stands at 605, with 1 aircraft carrier, 70 submarines, 15 destroyers, 11 frigates, 86 corvettes, 59 patrol vessels and 49 mine warfare.

How big are US & UK's armed forces?

The United States is the world's most powerful military force, while the United Kingdom sits at eighth position. The US has 13.90 lakh active personnel, while the UK has 1.94 lakh troops. 

In a comparison of military equipment and weapons, the US presently owns 6,612 tanks in comparison to UK's 227 tanks, while the number of armoured vehicles stands at 45,193 in US and UK's stands at 5,015. Along with that, the US owns 1,498 self-propelled artillery and 1,339 towed artillery while the United Kingdom operates 89 and 126 respectively. 

US's naval fleet strength is 484 while that of the UK is 75. Similarly, the US owns the highest number of aircraft carriers n the world at 11, while the UK owns two. US has 13,247 military aircraft, while the UK has 693.

Image: AP