How Pakistan’s military stacks up against India’s

India has launched subject strikes against Pakistan, putting the 2 nuclear-armed neighbours connected the brink of an all-out war.

The flare-up means that 2 of the region’s largest militaries are again successful face-to-face conflict.

The stand-off pits India, a planetary defence giant, against a state that whitethorn beryllium overmuch smaller, but is nevertheless heavy militarised and has dedicated a important stock of its resources to preparing for war.

As the world’s astir populous nation, India has 1 of the largest militaries, numbering astir 1.4 cardinal progressive work personnel, which see 1.2 cardinal successful the army, 60,000 successful the navy and 127,000 successful the aerial force. India besides has 1.6 million-strong paramilitary forces and a reserve of 1.1 million.

The state is simply a defence expenditure heavyweight. Its defence walk reached £58 cardinal ($77.4 billion) successful 2024, the second-highest outlay successful Asia aft China.

Meanwhile, Pakistan’s colonisation is simply a 5th of the size and the state has been mired successful an economical situation for years.

Last year, Pakistan’s defence fund was estimated to person been a 10th of that of its eastbound neighbour.

Pakistan has go heavy militarised to fend disconnected Indian control, which has travel astatine large outgo to its democracy.

The subject exerts important power implicit the civilian government, with Gen Syed Asim Munir, the caput of the army, wide seen arsenic the astir almighty antheral successful the country.

While India’s subject is progressively deployed to look China, Pakistan has built up a defence posture and doctrine revolving astir wholly astir India.

Pakistan fields a full of astir 650,000 progressive work personnel, including 560,000 successful the army, 23,800 successful the navy and 70,000 successful the aerial force. It besides has 280,000-strong paramilitary forces, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

In constricted exchanges, specified arsenic those seen successful the past 24 hours, Pakistan tin punch supra its weight, though analysts accidental that Delhi’s numerical and economical superiority could travel to carnivore precise rapidly successful a full-blown war.

Pakistan has leaned heavy successful caller years towards China for its arms, shifting distant from much costly Western suppliers.

India has important quantities of instrumentality from Russia, but has begun buying much from France and America.

On the battlefield, India is thought to person astir 3,100 main conflict tanks, including Arjun, T-72 and T-90 models.

Pakistan has astir 2,500, which see Al-Khalid, T-80, T-54/55, Type-59/Al Zarrar, Type-69 and Type 85 models.

Each state besides has a important aerial force. India has a substance including Dassault Rafale fighters, Sukhoi Su-30s and MiG-29s, MiG-27s and MiG-21s.

Pakistan has Chinese J-10s and JF-17s, arsenic good arsenic American F-16s, Mirage 3s and Mirage 5s.

The 2 countries whitethorn beryllium person to parity successful their atomic weapons.

India conducted its archetypal atomic trial successful 1974 and Pakistan became a atomic powerfulness successful 1998.

India has ne'er declared the size of its atomic armament, but 1 appraisal places the country’s stockpile astatine 160 atomic warheads, according to the Centre for Arms Control and Nuclear Proliferation. These tin beryllium deployed successful land-based ballistic missiles, submarine-launched missiles and craft with atomic bombs and missiles.

Pakistan is estimated to person astir 170 warheads and nuclear-capable ballistic missiles of varying ranges. The state tin besides motorboat the weapons from planes. In 2017, Pakistan test-fired a submarine-launched missile, though this is not yet thought to beryllium acceptable for use.

Even a tiny atomic speech betwixt India and Pakistan could termination 20 cardinal radical successful a week, according to the Centre for Arms Control and Nuclear Proliferation.

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