Data for 2012

Global Militarisation Index, 2012

Figures for 2012, as BICC published them · stored as published, never rewritten

Global Militarisation Index, 2012 covers 154 countries. Israel is highest, at 291.650; Malta is lowest, at 36.015. The middle country reads 109.540. Against 2011, 152 values changed (64 up, 88 down), 2 countries joined, 1 left.

Download CSV Cite this year

Global Militarisation Index · Data for 2012

HighestIsrael

291.650

LowestMalta

36.015

Shaded by value in five groups of equal size, darkest at the lowest end. A higher value is the worse result.

154countries
1measure
2012the year it describes
154distinct values13 decimals, as published
Sep 11, 2026read from the publisher
CC BY 4.0licence

01BICC’s rank

The table

Every country and every column of Global Militarisation Index, 2012, as published. The rank is BICC’s own, as printed. “=” marks a shared position.

Search this table

Showing 25 of 154 countries · select a heading to sort

Global Militarisation Index, 2012: every country, as published by Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC).

1	IsraelISRWestern Asia	291.650	Middle East
2	SingaporeSGPSouth-eastern Asia	267.844	East Asia
3	OmanOMNWestern Asia	261.871	Middle East
4	RussiaRUSEastern Europe	243.815	Eastern Europe
5	BahrainBHRWestern Asia	241.416	Middle East
6	SyriaSYRWestern Asia	238.274	Middle East
7	Saudi ArabiaSAUWestern Asia	226.701	Middle East
8	ArmeniaARMWestern Asia	224.193	Eastern Europe
9	JordanJORWestern Asia	223.919	Middle East
10	LebanonLBNWestern Asia	213.078	Middle East
11	United Arab EmiratesAREWestern Asia	210.331	Middle East
12	BruneiBRNSouth-eastern Asia	207.637	East Asia
13	South KoreaKOREastern Asia	205.470	East Asia
14	AzerbaijanAZEWestern Asia	204.702	Eastern Europe
15	KuwaitKWTWestern Asia	203.962	Middle East
16	CyprusCYPWestern Asia	194.927	Western Europe
17	South SudanSSDEastern Africa	193.622	Sub-Saharan Africa
18	GreeceGRCSouthern Europe	193.055	Western Europe
19	SudanSDNNorthern Africa	184.046	Sub-Saharan Africa
20	YemenYEMWestern Asia	183.072	Middle East
21	AlgeriaDZANorthern Africa	179.841	North Africa
22	BelarusBLREastern Europe	176.897	Eastern Europe
23	AngolaAGOMiddle Africa	174.614	Sub-Saharan Africa
24	United StatesUSANorthern America	174.396	North America
25	CubaCUBCaribbean	168.997	Central America and the Caribbean
26	ChadTCDMiddle Africa	165.435	Sub-Saharan Africa
27	MyanmarMMRSouth-eastern Asia	165.396	East Asia
28	MongoliaMNGEastern Asia	162.666	East Asia
29	MoroccoMARNorthern Africa	162.086	North Africa
30	IraqIRQWestern Asia	158.036	Middle East
31	CambodiaKHMSouth-eastern Asia	157.658	East Asia
32	UkraineUKREastern Europe	157.140	Eastern Europe
33	TürkiyeTURWestern Asia	156.923	Western Europe
34	FinlandFINNorthern Europe	156.832	Western Europe
35	BotswanaBWASouthern Africa	155.184	Sub-Saharan Africa
36	GeorgiaGEOWestern Asia	153.926	Eastern Europe
37	MontenegroMNESouthern Europe	151.395	Central Europe
38	NamibiaNAMSouthern Africa	149.794	Sub-Saharan Africa
39	IranIRNSouthern Asia	148.749	Middle East
40	QatarQATWestern Asia	148.695	Middle East
41	VietnamVNMSouth-eastern Asia	146.833	East Asia
42	MauritaniaMRTWestern Africa	146.738	Sub-Saharan Africa
43	Guinea-BissauGNBWestern Africa	146.339	Sub-Saharan Africa
44	PakistanPAKSouthern Asia	144.558	South Asia
45	EstoniaESTNorthern Europe	143.651	Central Europe
46	EgyptEGYNorthern Africa	143.617	Middle East
47	Bosnia and HerzegovinaBIHSouthern Europe	139.860	Central Europe
48	CroatiaHRVSouthern Europe	137.653	Central Europe
49	Sri LankaLKASouthern Asia	135.661	South Asia
50	RomaniaROUEastern Europe	132.022	Central Europe
51	SerbiaSRBSouthern Europe	131.966	Central Europe
52	ChileCHLSouth America	130.213	South America
53	Equatorial GuineaGNQMiddle Africa	129.826	Sub-Saharan Africa
54	UruguayURYSouth America	127.853	South America
55	BurundiBDIEastern Africa	126.573	Sub-Saharan Africa
56	Republic of the CongoCOGMiddle Africa	126.076	Sub-Saharan Africa
57	LibyaLBYNorthern Africa	125.587	North Africa
58	BoliviaBOLSouth America	125.466	South America
59	ThailandTHASouth-eastern Asia	124.801	East Asia
60	NorwayNORNorthern Europe	124.484	Western Europe
61	KyrgyzstanKGZCentral Asia	123.507	Central Asia
62	DenmarkDNKNorthern Europe	122.027	Western Europe
63	BulgariaBGREastern Europe	121.523	Central Europe
64	ZimbabweZWEEastern Africa	119.727	Sub-Saharan Africa
65	KazakhstanKAZCentral Asia	119.434	Central Asia
66	PortugalPRTSouthern Europe	119.330	Western Europe
67	FranceFRAWestern Europe	119.143	Western Europe
68	PolandPOLEastern Europe	118.390	Central Europe
69	ColombiaCOLSouth America	116.139	South America
70	PeruPERSouth America	114.946	South America
71	LaosLAOSouth-eastern Asia	114.712	East Asia
72	SwitzerlandCHEWestern Europe	113.592	Western Europe
73	SloveniaSVNSouthern Europe	113.242	Central Europe
74	EcuadorECUSouth America	112.142	South America
75	AustraliaAUSAustralia and New Zealand	111.810	Oceania
76	United KingdomGBRNorthern Europe	111.705	Western Europe
77	ItalyITASouthern Europe	111.302	Western Europe
78	AfghanistanAFGSouthern Asia	107.779	South Asia
79	GabonGABMiddle Africa	107.647	Sub-Saharan Africa
80	SwedenSWENorthern Europe	107.363	Western Europe
81	TunisiaTUNNorthern Africa	106.693	North Africa
82	MalaysiaMYSSouth-eastern Asia	106.420	East Asia
83	VenezuelaVENSouth America	99.848	South America
84	SlovakiaSVKEastern Europe	99.758	Central Europe
85	TogoTGOWestern Africa	99.235	Sub-Saharan Africa
86	Central African RepublicCAFMiddle Africa	97.149	Sub-Saharan Africa
87	CzechiaCZEEastern Europe	96.910	Central Europe
88	SpainESPSouthern Europe	96.053	Western Europe
89	ZambiaZMBEastern Africa	95.370	Sub-Saharan Africa
90	IndiaINDSouthern Asia	94.919	South Asia
91	EthiopiaETHEastern Africa	94.416	Sub-Saharan Africa
92	LithuaniaLTUNorthern Europe	93.873	Central Europe
93	HungaryHUNEastern Europe	92.297	Central Europe
94	NicaraguaNICCentral America	91.999	Central America and the Caribbean
95	NepalNPLSouthern Asia	91.047	South Asia
96	GuineaGINWestern Africa	90.288	Sub-Saharan Africa
97	CanadaCANNorthern America	88.437	North America
98	UgandaUGAEastern Africa	88.380	Sub-Saharan Africa
99	ChinaCHNEastern Asia	86.366	East Asia
100	MoldovaMDAEastern Europe	86.184	Eastern Europe
101	DR CongoCODMiddle Africa	86.179	Sub-Saharan Africa
102	BelgiumBELWestern Europe	82.964	Western Europe
103	LuxembourgLUXWestern Europe	82.462	Western Europe
104	AlbaniaALBSouthern Europe	82.094	Central Europe
105	GermanyDEUWestern Europe	81.924	Western Europe
106	NetherlandsNLDWestern Europe	81.699	Western Europe
107	Cabo VerdeCPVWestern Africa	81.072	Sub-Saharan Africa
108	LesothoLSOSouthern Africa	79.816	Sub-Saharan Africa
109	AustriaAUTWestern Europe	78.842	Western Europe
110	CameroonCMRMiddle Africa	78.746	Sub-Saharan Africa
111	El SalvadorSLVCentral America	78.430	Central America and the Caribbean
112	South AfricaZAFSouthern Africa	77.266	Sub-Saharan Africa
113	SenegalSENWestern Africa	77.263	Sub-Saharan Africa
114	ParaguayPRYSouth America	77.255	South America
115	FijiFJIMelanesia	77.244	Oceania
116	MaliMLIWestern Africa	76.290	Sub-Saharan Africa
117	MozambiqueMOZEastern Africa	75.641	Sub-Saharan Africa
118	BrazilBRASouth America	75.617	South America
119	New ZealandNZLAustralia and New Zealand	75.443	Oceania
120	NigerNERWestern Africa	74.456	Sub-Saharan Africa
121	TanzaniaTZAEastern Africa	73.915	Sub-Saharan Africa
122	ArgentinaARGSouth America	73.550	South America
123	HondurasHNDCentral America	71.873	Central America and the Caribbean
124	BangladeshBGDSouthern Asia	71.295	South Asia
125	Timor-LesteTLSSouth-eastern Asia	71.118	East Asia
126	Côte d’IvoireCIVWestern Africa	70.337	Sub-Saharan Africa
127	SeychellesSYCEastern Africa	69.951	Sub-Saharan Africa
128	KenyaKENEastern Africa	69.758	Sub-Saharan Africa
129	JapanJPNEastern Asia	69.169	East Asia
130	IndonesiaIDNSouth-eastern Asia	69.140	East Asia
131	Burkina FasoBFAWestern Africa	68.690	Sub-Saharan Africa
132	Sierra LeoneSLEWestern Africa	66.990	Sub-Saharan Africa
133	BeninBENWestern Africa	66.700	Sub-Saharan Africa
134	LatviaLVANorthern Europe	66.209	Central Europe
135	RwandaRWAEastern Africa	65.337	Sub-Saharan Africa
136	LiberiaLBRWestern Africa	64.689	Sub-Saharan Africa
137	TajikistanTJKCentral Asia	62.034	Central Asia
138	PhilippinesPHLSouth-eastern Asia	58.651	East Asia
139	MalawiMWIEastern Africa	58.440	Sub-Saharan Africa
140	GuyanaGUYSouth America	57.004	South America
141	IrelandIRLNorthern Europe	53.653	Western Europe
142	GuatemalaGTMCentral America	53.000	Central America and the Caribbean
143	Dominican RepublicDOMCaribbean	52.221	Central America and the Caribbean
144	GhanaGHAWestern Africa	49.638	Sub-Saharan Africa
145	MadagascarMDGEastern Africa	48.346	Sub-Saharan Africa
146	JamaicaJAMCaribbean	47.774	Central America and the Caribbean
147	NigeriaNGAWestern Africa	46.364	Sub-Saharan Africa
148	BelizeBLZCentral America	45.554	Central America and the Caribbean
149	MexicoMEXCentral America	44.579	Central America and the Caribbean
150	GambiaGMBWestern Africa	43.806	Sub-Saharan Africa
151	Papua New GuineaPNGMelanesia	42.566	Oceania
152	MauritiusMUSEastern Africa	39.416	Sub-Saharan Africa
153	Trinidad and TobagoTTOCaribbean	36.446	Central America and the Caribbean
154	MaltaMLTSouthern Europe	36.015	Western Europe

02In 2012

At either end

The 5 countries at each end of the headline.

Highest

#1Israel291.650
#2Singapore267.844
#3Oman261.871
#4Russia243.815
#5Bahrain241.416

Lowest

#154Malta36.015
#153Trinidad and Tobago36.446
#152Mauritius39.416
#151Papua New Guinea42.566
#150Gambia43.806

A higher value is the worse result. The middle country reads 109.540. “Shared” marks a value another country also holds.

032011 → 2012

Since 2011

What changed between 2011 and this one: who joined or left, and how far the headline moved.

+2 / −1countries joined / left
152values changed, of 152 in both
64 · 88rose · fell
0unchanged

Rose most

Libya88.558 → 125.587+37.029
South Sudan163.468 → 193.622+30.154
Nepal64.361 → 91.047+26.686
Tanzania49.791 → 73.915+24.124
Oman241.897 → 261.871+19.974

Fell most

Bulgaria161.320 → 121.523−39.797
Austria103.698 → 78.842−24.857
Mauritania165.881 → 146.738−19.143
Syria253.843 → 238.274−15.569
Kazakhstan133.992 → 119.434−14.558

+ Guinea

+ Myanmar

− Djibouti

Changes in value, not in places: a country’s place also moves when others do. Every country’s full history is charted on the statistic page.

04Caveats

Read before you use

What this edition’s numbers are and are not, worked out from the file itself.

The site’s method

The rank is BICC’s
Printed exactly as the publisher ranked the countries. This site does not re-rank them.
Which end is better
A higher value is the worse result.
Nothing missing
Every one of the 154 countries has every column.

05The files

Download and cite

The table as a file, digit for digit, what this site changed, and a citation for this edition.

Licence in full

.csv
For a spreadsheet or code
154 rows · 8.9 KB · UTF-8, opens in Excel
Opens with 11 lines of source notes; the table starts on row 13.
Download militarisation-2012-nations-inquiry.csv
↗
The publisher’s original
BICC’s own file, on its own site.
GMI-2024-all-years.xlsx

What this site changed: Reshaped into one row per country: regional and income-group totals are left out, only the columns listed are kept, each row gets its ISO 3166 code, and some country names are brought to one spelling. No value is recalculated, rescaled or rounded.

Licence: CC BY. Share, adapt and use commercially. Credit the publisher and say if you changed anything.

Cite this edition

Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC) (2012). Global Militarisation Index, 2012 [data set], describing 2012. As held by Nations Inquiry, https://nationsinquiry.com/datasets/militarisation/2012

0634 held

Other years

‹ The year before
Global Militarisation Index, 2011
153 countries
The year after ›
Global Militarisation Index, 2013
153 countries
All of them
Global Militarisation Index: every year
34 held, with the data dictionary, coverage and licence.
How it has moved, charted by country

07Questions