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Military Strength: Flag of United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates vs Flag of Australia Australia

United Arab Emirates (ranked #27 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Australia (#28) on the ATLAS Index. United Arab Emirates fields 63,000 active troops vs 58,600 for Australia, backed by 130,000 reserves. United Arab Emirates allocates $22B to defense compared to $35B for Australia.

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of United Arab Emirates United Arab EmiratesWorld #27 39.4
ATLAS Index / 100

United Arab Emirates leads overall, ahead on 2 of 6 pillars

Flag of Australia AustraliaWorld #28 38.8
  • 45.963K active troops Manpower10 % 41.258K active troops
  • 51.9354 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 35.646 battle tanks
  • 35.562 warships Naval power20 % 48.042 warships
  • 42.5175 combat aircraft Air power25 % 44.096 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 42.0$22B budget Defense budget15 % 43.2$35B budget
United Arab Emirates Australia Pillar scores 0–100 (weight under each label) over a headline figure from that domain · each conventional pillar read after its branch's availability proxy · Methodology
Key figures
United Arab Emirates Australia Ratio
Defense budget $22B $35B 🇦🇺 1.6×
– share of GDP 4.0% 2.0% 🇦🇪 2.0×
Active personnel 63,000 58,600 🇦🇪 1.1×
Combat aircraft 175 96 🇦🇪 1.8×
Warships 62 42 🇦🇪 1.5×
– submarines 0 6 🇦🇺
Main battle tanks 354 46 🇦🇪 7.7×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 130,000 33,270 🇦🇪 3.9×
Paramilitary forces 0 0 —
Military aircraft (all types) 625 367 🇦🇪 1.7×
– helicopters 250 73 🇦🇪 3.4×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $1,919 $1,273 🇦🇪 1.5×
Population 11.5M 27.6M 🇦🇺 2.4×
GDP $552B $1.8T 🇦🇺 3.3×
GDP per capita $47,973 $65,130 🇦🇺 1.4×
Land area 83,600 km² 7,633,565 km² 🇦🇺 91×
Coastline 1,318 km 25,760 km 🇦🇺 20×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇦🇪 United Arab EmiratesF-16 Fighting Falcon ×76Leclerc ×354
🇦🇺 AustraliaF-35 Lightning II ×72M1 Abrams ×46Collins-class ×6
Defense budget history United Arab Emirates ×1.0 · Australia ×1.3 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, United Arab Emirates or Australia?
United Arab Emirates has approximately 63,000 active military personnel compared to Australia's 58,600.
Which country has more combat aircraft, United Arab Emirates or Australia?
United Arab Emirates operates 175 combat aircraft compared to Australia's 96. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, United Arab Emirates or Australia?
United Arab Emirates has a larger navy with 62 warships compared to Australia's 42. United Arab Emirates operates 0 submarines while Australia has 6.
Which country spends more on defense, United Arab Emirates or Australia?
Australia has a larger defense budget at $35.1 billion (1.6:1 more) compared to United Arab Emirates's $22.1 billion annually.
Do United Arab Emirates and Australia have nuclear weapons?
Neither United Arab Emirates nor Australia currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of United Arab Emirates and Australia compare?
United Arab Emirates operates 354 main battle tanks compared to Australia's 46. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.