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Military Strength: Flag of Cyprus Cyprus vs Flag of Malta Malta

Cyprus (ranked #80 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Malta (#148) on the ATLAS Index. Cyprus fields 13,000 active troops — 6.5:1 Malta's 2,000, backed by 60,000 reserves. Cyprus's $0.6B defense budget is 5.1:1 that of Malta ($0.1B).

ATLAS (Aggregate Total of Land, Air and Sea strength) Index face-off Full ranking →
Flag of Cyprus CyprusWorld #80 20.5
ATLAS Index / 100

Cyprus leads on 5 of 6 pillars

Flag of Malta MaltaWorld #148 6.8
  • 33.613K active troops Manpower10 % 15.72,000 active troops
  • 31.6134 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 0.00 battle tanks
  • 19.011 warships Naval power20 % 0.00 warships
  • 15.30 combat aircraft Air power25 % 13.20 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 19.4$640M budget Defense budget15 % 12.7$125M budget
Cyprus Malta 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
Cyprus Malta Ratio
Defense budget $640M $125M 🇨🇾 5.1×
– share of GDP 1.7% 0.5% 🇨🇾 3.4×
Active personnel 13,000 2,000 🇨🇾 6.5×
Combat aircraft 0 0 —
Warships 11 0 🇨🇾
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 134 0 🇨🇾
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 60,000 260 🇨🇾 231×
Paramilitary forces 0 0 —
Military aircraft (all types) 13 7 🇨🇾 1.9×
– helicopters 13 3 🇨🇾 4.3×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $471 $220 🇨🇾 2.1×
Population 1.4M 568K 🇨🇾 2.4×
GDP $38B $25B 🇨🇾 1.5×
GDP per capita $27,707 $43,899 🇲🇹 1.6×
Land area 9,241 km² 316 km² 🇨🇾 29×
Coastline 648 km 252 km 🇨🇾 2.6×
Defense budget history Cyprus ×1.4 · Malta ×1.3 since 2020
Military personnel history
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Cyprus vsCzechiaAustriaHungarySlovakiaSwitzerland
Malta vsLuxembourgMontenegroMoldovaLatviaNorth Macedonia
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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Cyprus or Malta?
Cyprus has approximately 13,000 active military personnel compared to Malta's 2,000, giving Cyprus a 6.5:1 numerical advantage.
Who has the larger navy, Cyprus or Malta?
Cyprus has a larger navy with 11 vessels compared to Malta's 0 ships.
Which country spends more on defense, Cyprus or Malta?
Cyprus has a larger defense budget at $640 million (5.1:1 more) compared to Malta's $125 million annually.
Do Cyprus and Malta have nuclear weapons?
Neither Cyprus nor Malta currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Cyprus and Malta compare?
Cyprus operates 134 main battle tanks compared to Malta's 0. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.