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Military power of France & Iraq

France vs Iraq

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France Iraq

France is a country located in Western Europe with an area of 640,679 km² (land boundries: 3,956 km and costline 4,853 km). The capital of France is Paris. The number of inhabitants is 67,413,000.

France was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty, which created NATO in 1949. France and the UK signed in 2010 a declaration on defense and security cooperation that included greater military interoperability and a Combined Joint Expeditionary Force. The CJEF was assessed as having full operating capacity with the ability to rapidly deploy over 10,000 personnel. The French military's inventory consists mostly of domestically-produced weapons systems, including some jointly-produced with other European countries. France has a defense industry capable of manufacturing the full spectrum of military weapons systems.

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Iraq is a country located in Middle East with an area of 437,072 km² (land boundries: 3,809 km and costline 58 km). The capital of Iraq is Baghdad. The number of inhabitants is 38,433,600.

The Iraqi military inventory is comprised of a mix of equipment from a wide variety of sources, including Europe, South Africa, South Korea, Russia, and the US. Russia and the USA are the leading suppliers of military hardware to Iraq.

More about Iraq military

If you want to check the comparison in terms of economic ratios check out CompareEconomy.com

Military expenditures

Military budget

60 billion $

10 billion $

Percent of GDP

1.9 %

3.5 %

Manpower

Active personnel

270,000

193,000

Reserve personnel

141,050

553,000

Available for military

14,563,662

11,700,000

Land Forces

Tanks

406

848

Armoured fighting vehicles

6,748

5,284

Total artillery

119

1,969

Self-propelled artillery

96

283

Rocket artillery

11

424

Air Forces

Total aircraft

1,143

379

Fighter

26

0

Multirole

144

26

Attack

66

32

Helicopters

478

203

UCAV (combat drone)

16

14

Navy

Total naval

111

68

Aircraft carriers

4

0

Destroyers

10

0

Frigates

12

0

Corvettes

0

2

Submarines

10

0

Nuclear weapons

France

France managed to research and develop its own nuclear weapon in 1960. The test, known as, Gerboise Bleue, was the result of mostly French research. One of the main figures that played crucial role in the entire process of developing the bomb was General Pierre Marie Gallois. He was concerned that the Suez Crisis, which started in 1956, would show the world how insignificant France became, since out of all Great Powers in the world, they were the only one without possessing its own nuclear arsenal. The tests were conducted on the terrains of Sahara Desert.

At this moment France owns 300 nuclear warheads, out of which almost all are deployed. What is more, compared to Great Britain, they made more tests, approximately 210. Noteworthy is the fact that the development of the first nuclear bomb in France as well as its tests were a bit controversial. It was due to the fact that France allowed Israeli observers to attend the tests, providing them with almost unrestricted access to all the data. It was quite important, since Israel, together with United Kingdom and France, were trying to invade Egypt.

Iraq

Does not have nuclear weapons.

Military service

France

18-25 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; no conscription; 1-year service obligation; women serve in noncombat post.

Iraq

18-49 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription.