NZ fires few shots in 'military might' rankings

New Zealand is ranked 101 out of 126 nations worldwide. Photo / Supplied

New Zealand may be ranked among the top countries for tourism and lifestyle, but when it comes to military might, it is behind even Nepal, Ghana and South Sudan.

In the 2016 world military strength ranking released by website Global Firepower, New Zealand is ranked 101 out of 126 nations worldwide.

Over 50 factors were taken into account to assess each country's military capability and determine a nation's power index score.

"This allows smaller, though more technologically-advanced, nations to compete with larger, lesser-developed ones," a statement from Global Firepower said.

"Modifiers in the form of bonuses and penalties are added to refine the list."

It did not simply rely on the total number of weapons a country had, but considered weapon diversity to provide a better balance.

According to Global Firepower, key considerations taken for the final rankings included geographical factors, natural resources, logistical flexibility and local industry.

The United States of America was ranked as the most powerful military nation, followed by Russia, China, India, France and the United Kingdom.

Australia is 23rd, just behind Canada on 22 and ahead of Saudi Arabia, North Korea and Algeria.

The country with the weakest military according to the ranking is the Central African Republic.

http://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-listing.asp

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GLOBAL FIREPOWER MILITARY RANKS 2016

1. United States of America

2. Russia

3. China

4. India

5. France

6. United Kingdom

7. Japan

8. Turkey

9. Germany

10. Italy

11. South Korea

22. Canada

23. Australia

98. Nepal

101. New Zealand

124. Namibia

126. Central African Republic

(source: http://www.globalfirepower.com/countries-listing.asp)