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Military Strength: Flag of Bahrain Bahrain vs Flag of Syria Syria

Bahrain (ranked #58 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Syria (#73) on the ARMS Index. Syria fields 269,000 active troops — 14:1 Bahrain's 19,000. Bahrain allocates $1.4B to defense compared to $2.5B for Syria.

ARMS (Aggregate Rating of Military Strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Bahrain BahrainWorld #58 35.4
ARMS Index / 100

Bahrain leads overall, ahead on 2 of 6 pillars

Flag of Syria SyriaWorld #73 29.8
  • 47.319K active troops Manpower15 % 70.8269K active troops
  • 50.1150 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 38.7365 battle tanks
  • 29.465 warships Naval power20 % 0.00 warships
  • 41.344 combat aircraft Air power25 % 54.5225 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 36.0$1.4B budget Defense budget10 % 40.6$2.5B budget
Bahrain Syria Pillar scores 0–100 (weight under each label) over a headline figure from that domain · readiness modifier ×1.10 vs ×0.94 · Methodology
Key figures
Bahrain Syria Ratio
Defense budget $1.4B $2.5B 🇸🇾 1.8×
– share of GDP 3.0% 4.1% 🇸🇾 1.4×
Active personnel 19,000 269,000 🇸🇾 14×
Combat aircraft 44 225 🇸🇾 5.1×
Warships 65 0 🇧🇭
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 150 365 🇸🇾 2.4×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 0 —
Paramilitary forces 11,260 0 🇧🇭
Military aircraft (all types) 136 414 🇸🇾 3.0×
– helicopters 80 153 🇸🇾 1.9×
Budget share of govt spending — 13.6% 🇸🇾
Budget per capita $890 $110 🇧🇭 8.1×
Population 1.6M 24.7M 🇸🇾 16×
GDP $47B $24B 🇧🇭 2.0×
GDP per capita $29,654 $957 🇧🇭 31×
Land area 786 km² 183,630 km² 🇸🇾 234×
Coastline 161 km 193 km 🇸🇾 1.2×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇧🇭 BahrainF-16 Fighting Falcon ×32M60A3 TTS Patton ×100Oliver Hazard Perry-class ×2
🇸🇾 SyriaMiG-23 Flogger ×87
Defense budget history
Military personnel history

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Bahrain or Syria?
Syria has approximately 269,000 active military personnel compared to Bahrain's 19,000, giving Syria a 14:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Bahrain or Syria?
Syria operates 225 combat aircraft compared to Bahrain's 44. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Bahrain or Syria?
Bahrain has a larger navy with 65 vessels compared to Syria's 0 ships.
Which country spends more on defense, Bahrain or Syria?
Syria has a larger defense budget at $2.5 billion (1.8:1 more) compared to Bahrain's $1.4 billion annually.
Do Bahrain and Syria have nuclear weapons?
Neither Bahrain nor Syria currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Bahrain and Syria compare?
Syria operates 365 main battle tanks compared to Bahrain's 150. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.