Last modified on September 10, 2025, at 23:39

Essay: The strength of the United States military

The United States will likely be the strongest country for the foreseeable future and this is due to the strengths of the USA and partly due to the weaknesses of China and Russia.

See: The United States will be the leading power in the world for the foreseeable future

This essay is an auxiliary essay to my essay at: The United States will be the leading power in the world for the foreseeable future

Question: Does the United States have the strongest military in the world?

To find out the answer to this question, please read the resources below.

Top 10 militaries by strength: USA ranked the strongest in the world

See also: The United States will be the leading power in the world for the foreseeable future

Rankings of the world's top militaries:

Articles may not take into account alliances such as NATO, Aukus, etc. NATO has a provision that an attack on one country is an attack on all of the countries. See: NATO articles and videos

The United States States has a significant number of allies and strategic partnerships such as the: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) (NATO is made up of 32 countries. In 2024, the combined population of the 32 member countries of NATO was about 973 million people[1] and the combined GDP of all 32 NATO members was $45.93319 trillion.[2]); Aukus (a trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States); the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), and the Organization of American States (OAS). See: Who Are the US Allies: A Comprehensive Guide to America’s Key International Partnerships and Advancing U.S. Alliances and Partnerships through Security Sector Governance Initiatives The U.S.-Japan Alliance (日米同盟, Nichi-Bei Dōmei) is a military alliance between Japan and the United States of America, as codified in the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security between the United States and Japan, which was first signed in 1951, took effect in 1952, and was amended in 1960.[1]

Articles:

Since 2006, the Global Firepower Index (GFP) website has "provided a unique analytical display of data concerning 145 modern military powers. The GFP ranking is based on each nation's potential war-making capability across land, sea, and air fought by conventional means."[3] The Global Firepower Index uses over 60 different factors. These factors are grouped into eight categories which are — geography, manpower, airpower, naval power, land power, financials, resources, and geography.[4]

USA military ranked the highest in the world:

Videos:



Map of the United States

United States military

Videos:

U.S. Military Strength: USA ranked the strongest military in the world

USA ranked the strongest military in the world:

The U.S. Navy is the most powerful navy in the world

U.S. Navy seal

See also: The U.S. Navy is the most powerful navy in the world

Colonel Douglas MacGregor said about China in the video Why China's Navy is a JOKE: "China has huge problems just holding itself together. So I think we should set China aside and understand that."[5] See: Skepticism about China remaining a global power

Below are the most powerful navies in the world:[6][7]

  1. United States
  2. China
  3. Russia
  4. Indonesia
  5. South Korea
  6. India
  7. Japan
  8. France
  9. United Kingdom
  10. Turkey
  11. Italy
  12. Taiwan

Blue water navies and their capabilities

Rule America and Britannia. Rule the waves!.png


Videos on the U.S. Navy having the most powerful navy in the world

U.S. Navy Seals

U.S. Army

U.S. Delta Force:

U.S Rangers:

United States Army Special Forces (Green Berets):

U.S. Army seal

U.S. Marine Corps

U.S. Marine Corps soldiers

U.S. Air Force

The United States Air Force seal

John Joseph Mearsheimer and U.S., China and Russia in relation to them being great powers

The flag of the United States

John Mearsheimer, is an American political scientist and international relations scholar, who belongs to the realist school of international relations and teaches at the University of Chicago.

In his 2023 interview with the South China Morning Post, Professor John Joseph Mearsheimer stated about U.S. relations with China and Russia:

“ The Americans have a vested interest in pivoting full force to East Asia, to contain China. The Americans view China as a more serious threat than Russia. It’s very important to understand that China is a peer competitor to the United States. China is a rising great power and is a threat to the US in ways that Russia is not. So the Americans have a vested interest in not getting bogged down in a war in eastern Europe, more specifically in Ukraine.

Furthermore, they have a vested interest in doing everything they can to make sure that Russia and China are not close allies. What happens as a result of the Ukraine war is that it’s almost impossible for the US to fully pivot in Asia.[8]

”

However, China has grown considerably weaker in terms of it economy (Military power rest on economic power since militaries are expensive and need funding): Skepticism about China remaining a global power

In addition, please read: The United States will be the leading power in the world for the foreseeable future

In his March 2022 interview with The New Yorker, Mearsheimer indicated:

“ I’m talking about the raw-power potential of Russia—the amount of economic might it has. Military might is built on economic might. You need an economic foundation to build a really powerful military. To go out and conquer countries like Ukraine and the Baltic states and to re-create the former Soviet Union or re-create the former Soviet Empire in Eastern Europe would require a massive army, and that would require an economic foundation that contemporary Russia does not come close to having. There is no reason to fear that Russia is going to be a regional hegemony in Europe. Russia is not a serious threat to the United States. We do face a serious threat in the international system. We face a peer competitor. And that’s China. Our policy in Eastern Europe is undermining our ability to deal with the most dangerous threat that we face today.[9] ”

In 2014, Mearsheimer said: "Russia is a declining power, and it will only get weaker with time."[10]

The United States States has a significant number of allies and strategic partnerships

The United States States has a significant number of allies and strategic partnerships such as the: North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) (NATO is made up of 32 countries. In 2024, the combined population of the 32 member countries of NATO was about 973 million people[11] and the combined GDP of all 32 NATO members was $45.93319 trillion.[12]); Aukus (a trilateral security partnership for the Indo-Pacific region between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States); the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), and the Organization of American States (OAS). See: Who Are the US Allies: A Comprehensive Guide to America’s Key International Partnerships and Advancing U.S. Alliances and Partnerships through Security Sector Governance Initiatives

On December 17, 2024, the Quincy Institute's website Responsible Statecraft stated: "Russian GDP is 24.5 times smaller than the combined GDP of NATO members and 11.5 times smaller than in the U.S. Its population is seven times smaller than the combined NATO population and almost two and a half times smaller than the American population. Its much expanded total military headcount is only 45% of the size of NATO standing armies. In an attritional war with NATO, which Russia has always sought to avoid, it would not have the demographic or economic reserves to win out."[13]

See also:

NATO: The largest military alliance in the world

NATO is the largest military alliance in the world.[14] The United States is a member of NATO and its most influential member. As of 2024, the USA pays 16% of NATO's total budget.[15]

Video:

Articles and videos:

Is NATO stronger or weaker due the Russian February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and subsequent events?

Russian military and its weaknesses relative to NATO

Videos:

Russia's counterweight to NATO is falling apart. Russia is losing influence in the Middle East

See also: Russian military weaknesses

Read the article: Russia's counterweight to NATO is falling apart. Russia is losing influence in the Middle East

"The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) is also falling apart. Initially founded as a counterweight to NATO, it has long been exposed as an attempted revanche to return control of former SSRs to Moscow. Uzbekistan left the alliance 12 years ago, and this year, Armenia announced its plans to leave. The loss of Armenia will force Moscow to abandon two more vital military bases and diminish its position in the South Caucasus." - Vladimir Putin Is Digging His Own Grave in Ukraine, December 11, 2024

Russia losing influence in the Middle East:

USA and its better demographics than other major powers. A country being a stronger power due to stronger demographics

USA and demographics and it being favorable to other major powers

USA: World's sole superpower since 1991


Source: USA longest reigning superpower

Donald Trump and his effect on U.S. national defense readiness

Donald Trump and the potential consequences of his 2024 presidential victory:

Donald Trump

WWII and the United States doubling its industrial capacity

WWII photo montage

World War II lasted for six years, from 1939 to 1945. The United States entered World War II on December 8, 1941, following the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, which prompted Congress to declare war against Japan the following day

World War II was also known as The Great Patriotic War, was a global set of conflicts beginning in 1931 in Asia, 1935 in Africa, and 1939 in Europe, all lasting until 1945, in which the Allied powers, led after the Fall of France by the British Commonwealth, and including the United States, the Soviet Union, the Republic of China, among many other nations, completely defeated the Axis Powers, led by Nazi Germany, and including Italy, Japan, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria. Although Japan's war against China began in 1937, the main conflict started in September 1939 when Germany and the Soviet Union divided Poland; Britain and France then declared war on Germany. France was quickly knocked out of the war and became divided betwen the collaborationist Vichy regime occupying the continent and the so-called "Free French" in exile in England and North Africa.

WWII and the United States doubling its industrial capacity from December 7, 1941 to August 14, 1945

"The United States ramped up its industrial capacity during World War II, producing more than its own military required and becoming the world's strongest military force:

Factories:

Manufacturers retooled their plants to produce war goods, and new factories were built with government and private funds.

Production:

American industrial production doubled in size during the war, and the US produced almost two-thirds of all Allied military equipment."[16]

WWII and the increase in U.S. national debt

Historical graph of the U.S. national debt as a percentage of GDP.

Japan and its relative prosperity to the rest of the world and high levels of debt

The flag of Japan

Japan is a high-income country.

"Japan recorded a Government Debt to GDP of 263.90 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product in 2022. Government Debt to GDP in Japan averaged 146.28 percent of GDP from 1980 until 2022, reaching an all time high of 263.90 percent of GDP in 2022 and a record low of 50.60 percent of GDP in 1980."[17] See also: Will the National Debt Kill the US Economy? (Video)

While excessive federal government debt is a drag on an economy, an August 2023 article of the New York Times reported concerning the Japanese economy: Roaring Back From Pandemic, Japan’s Economy Grows at 6% Rate.

With that being said, the USA should pay off its national debt over time like in did post WWII. While it will probably be more challenging to do and will require sacrifices, the long term benefit in terms of economic stability and economic growth is well worth the price.

The USA can reduce its national debt. It has done it before

See: The USA can reduce its national debt. It has done it before

The USA and its ability to fund a war

"With the world’s deepest capital markets, the U.S. makes up 42.5% of global equity market capitalization, outpacing the next closest economy, the European Union by a significant margin." - Visual Capitalist, 2023[18]

In January 2024, Yahoo Finance rated the U.S. dollar the strongest currency in the world.[19] In April 2024, Forbes magazine ranked the U.S. Dollar the 10th strongest currency.[20] See: The terrible track record of forecasters predicting rapid de-dollarization and/or the imminent demise of the U.S. dollar

The great power gap

See also: The myth of multipolarity. What do the terms unipolar, bipolar and multipolar mean as far as international relations?

"The United States and China are undoubtedly the two most powerful countries, but at least one more country must be roughly in their league for multipolarity to exist. This is where claims of multipolarity fall apart. Every country that could plausibly rank third—France, Germany, India, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom—is in no way a rough peer of the United States or China." -The Myth of Multipolarity, American Power’s Staying Power, Foreign Affairs, 2023

However, a number of leading geopolitical analysts are skeptical about China remaining a global power as it faces a number of serious intractable problems (See: Skepticism about China remaining a global power).

I do agree with Donald Trump that America should not get into "endless wars" that do not serve America's vital interests.[21] I also agree with Trump's policy of not using the American military to "solve ancient conflicts in faraway lands".[22]

America, the most powerful country in the world. It's army of talented business people is more powerful than its military

"The business of America is business." - Calvin Coolidge

Calvin Coolidge famously said "The business of America is business." America's greater strength is not its military might, it's greater strength is its army of business people and its natural resources.

As can be seen in the essay below, the United States has a strong economy:

Behold, the strength of America's business people in the essays below:

U.S. gold reserves

See also: Gold reserves by country. The USA is still golden!

Gold reserves by country ranked in order in 2023 by tons of gold.[23]

USA's gold reserves: Statistics

Other essays on the United States

The bald eagle has been the national bird of the United States since 1782.[24]

Bald eagles, like other eagles worldwide, are seen as symbols of strength, courage, and freedom. And, unlike other eagles, the bald eagle is indigenous only to North America.[25]

The Russian Army compared to the Israeli army. Why is the Israeli army so outstanding?

See also: The weaknesses of the Russian military

Israel is close ally of the United States.

Please read the essay below:



The Israeli flag

Essays on China and Russia

The flag of China.

China:

Russia:



The flag of Russia

International politics/relations essays

User:Conservative's essays

External links

References

  1. ↑ NATO alliances, Worddata.info website
  2. ↑ Funding NATO, NATO website
  3. ↑ Global Firepower 2023 Military Strength Ranking: A Global Comparison
  4. ↑ Global Firepower 2023 Military Strength Ranking: A Global Comparison
  5. ↑ Why China's Navy is a JOKE
  6. ↑ THE 10 MOST POWERFUL NAVIES IN THE WORLD - 2023
  7. ↑ Top 10 Navies in the World, Military Today
  8. ↑ The West needs to prepare for ‘ugly’ Russian victory in Ukraine, which will reward China, leading US political scientist warns, South China Morning Post
  9. ↑ Why John Mearsheimer Blames the U.S. for the Crisis in Ukraine, The New Yorker, March 2022
  10. ↑ Why the Ukraine Crisis Is the West’s Fault, Foreign Affairs, Published August 18, 2014
  11. ↑ NATO alliances, Worddata.info website
  12. ↑ Funding NATO, NATO website
  13. ↑ NATO countries spending 3%? That's empire., Responsible Statecraft website, December 17, 2024
  14. ↑ NATO - The largest military alliance in the world | DW Documentary - video
  15. ↑ Fact Check: US contributes 16% of NATO annual budget, not two-thirds, Reuters, 2024
  16. ↑ WWII USA ramped up industrial capacity, Google search AI, 11-30-2024
  17. ↑ Japan's government debt as a percentage of GDP
  18. ↑ The $109 Trillion Global Stock Market in One Chart
  19. ↑ 15 Strongest Currencies in the World in 2024, Yahoo Finance, January 2024.
  20. ↑ Top 10 Strongest Currencies In The World In April 2024, Forbes, April 2024
  21. ↑ Trump to West Point grads: 'We are ending the era of endless wars', Reuters, June 13, 2022
  22. ↑ Trump to West Point grads: 'We are ending the era of endless wars', Reuters, June 13, 2022
  23. ↑ Gold reserves by country
  24. ↑ The American Bald Eagle
  25. ↑ The American Bald Eagle