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Military Strength: Flag of Cambodia Cambodia vs Flag of Sri Lanka Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka (ranked #65 globally) holds a stronger overall military position than Cambodia (#83) on the ARMS Index. Cambodia fields 191,000 active troops vs 317,000 for Sri Lanka, backed by 5,500 reserves and 94,050 paramilitary. Sri Lanka's $1.5B defense budget is 2.1:1 that of Cambodia ($0.7B).

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Flag of Cambodia CambodiaWorld #83 26.1
ARMS Index / 100

Sri Lanka leads on 4 of 6 pillars

Flag of Sri Lanka Sri LankaWorld #65 32.8
  • 69.3191K active troops Manpower15 % 76.1317K active troops
  • 60.3644 battle tanks Ground forces20 % 45.344 battle tanks
  • 15.521 warships Naval power20 % 48.9271 warships
  • 20.50 combat aircraft Air power25 % 34.417 combat aircraft
  • 0.00 warheads Nuclear deterrent10 % 0.00 warheads
  • 30.6$695M budget Defense budget10 % 36.4$1.5B budget
Cambodia Sri Lanka Pillar scores 0–100 (weight under each label) over a headline figure from that domain · readiness modifier ×0.87 vs ×0.87 · Methodology
Key figures
Cambodia Sri Lanka Ratio
Defense budget $695M $1.5B 🇱🇰 2.1×
– share of GDP 1.5% 1.5% —
Active personnel 191,000 317,000 🇱🇰 1.7×
Combat aircraft 0 17 🇱🇰
Warships 21 271 🇱🇰 13×
– submarines 0 0 —
Main battle tanks 644 44 🇰🇭 15×
Nuclear warheads 0 0 —
Show full breakdown · 11 more rowsHide the 11 extra rows
Reserve troops 0 5,500 🇱🇰
Paramilitary forces 67,000 94,050 🇱🇰 1.4×
Military aircraft (all types) 25 99 🇱🇰 4.0×
– helicopters 21 62 🇱🇰 3.0×
Budget share of govt spending — — —
Budget per capita $39 $68 🇱🇰 1.7×
Population 17.6M 21.9M 🇱🇰 1.2×
GDP $46B $99B 🇱🇰 2.1×
GDP per capita $2,628 $4,516 🇱🇰 1.7×
Land area 176,515 km² 62,732 km² 🇰🇭 2.8×
Coastline 443 km 1,340 km 🇱🇰 3.0×
Backbone systems most numerous in service
🇰🇭 CambodiaT-54 / T-55 / TM-800 ×400
🇱🇰 Sri LankaJL-8 ×6T-54 / T-55 / TM-800 ×62Hamilton-class ×2
Defense budget history Cambodia ×0.9 · Sri Lanka ×0.9 since 2020
Military personnel history

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Frequently Asked Questions

Who has more military personnel, Cambodia or Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka has approximately 317,000 active military personnel compared to Cambodia's 191,000, giving Sri Lanka a 1.7:1 numerical advantage.
Which country has more combat aircraft, Cambodia or Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka operates 17 combat aircraft compared to Cambodia's 0. This includes fighters, strike aircraft, and multirole combat jets.
Who has the larger navy, Cambodia or Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka has a larger navy with 271 vessels compared to Cambodia's 21 ships.
Which country spends more on defense, Cambodia or Sri Lanka?
Sri Lanka has a larger defense budget at $1.5 billion (2.1:1 more) compared to Cambodia's $695 million annually.
Do Cambodia and Sri Lanka have nuclear weapons?
Neither Cambodia nor Sri Lanka currently possesses nuclear weapons.
How do the tank forces of Cambodia and Sri Lanka compare?
Cambodia operates 644 main battle tanks compared to Sri Lanka's 44. Tank numbers reflect both active inventory and reserves.