How big is the gap between the forces of Ukraine and Russia?
- With one of the largest and strongest armies in the world, Russian power dwarfs neighbouring Ukraine on every measure
- The Ukrainian central bank has opened a fundraising account to support the embattled army
Military aid and diplomatic support from Nato and the United States for Ukraine pales against one of the largest and strongest armies in the world. Ukraine’s central bank opened a special fundraising account on Thursday for donations from people around the world to support its embattled army.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says his country is being “left alone” in its conflict with the Russians, whose forces are superior in every aspect.
Military expenditure
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), which tracks expenditure and arms trade, Russia and Ukraine attribute similar portions of their gross domestic product (GDP) to their militaries at 4.3 per cent and 4.1 per cent, respectively.
However, Russia’s economy is around 10 times the size of Ukraine’s, putting its expenditure in 2020 at US$61.7 billion, compared to Ukraine’s US$5.9 billion.
Troops
Russia has 850,000 active full-time personnel in its army, more than three times Ukraine’s 250,000. When reserve and paramilitary forces, such as the police, are included, Russian troops still outnumber their Ukrainian counterparts by nearly three to one.
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Air and land forces
Russia has more than 4,100 aircraft, including over 700 fighter jets and 500-plus attack helicopters.
In stark contrast, Ukraine has just over 300 aircraft, with around 70 fighter jets and 30 attack helicopters.
Russian tanks also vastly outnumber the Ukrainian side – and the rest of the world, leading the global ranking with more than 12,400. The US, in second place, has around half that number, at 6,600, while North Korea is third with nearly 5,900.
In total, Russia has over 30,100 armoured vehicles, around 2.5 times Ukraine’s total.
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Navy
The discrepancy between the two militaries is most apparent in their naval forces, an arena the Ukrainians have little to nothing to draw on in their conflict with Russia.
The Ukrainian navy has no submarines or destroyers, while the Russian fleet has 70 and 15, respectively. Ukraine’s single frigate and corvette are no match against Russia’s 11 and 86. In total, Russian naval vessels outnumber the Ukrainian navy by 16 times.
Nuclear weapons
Observers do not expect nuclear weapons to be used, pointing to a joint statement released in January by the five nuclear-armed states – including Russia, China and the US – which said “a nuclear war cannot be won and must never be fought”.
On the other hand, Ukraine in 1994 gave up the nuclear weapons it inherited from the Soviet Union and joined the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons.
