Syria Military Power Ranking 2025
MPR Rank: 71st
MPR SCORE: 454
MPR Index: 0.1722 (1.0000 is perfect)
Reverse MPR Index: 0.7845 (0.0000 is perfect)
Z Score: +0.011 (standard deviations above the mean)
Overview
Syria ranks 71st in the 2025 Military Power Rankings (MPR). Following the collapse of the Assad regime in December 2024, the Syrian Arab Armed Forces (SAAF) disintegrated, resulting in a fragmented military environment dominated by local militias, tribal forces, and remnants of various ideological factions. The newly established Syrian caretaker government, under interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, has initiated efforts to build a unified, professional national military—but these efforts face immense obstacles due to sectarian division, ideological distrust, and foreign influence. Syria's current military strength is transitional, focused more on stabilization, demobilization, and security consolidation than on power projection or warfighting capability.
Strengths: Fragmented Combat Experience and Stabilization Efforts
Battle-Tested Personnel and Units: Despite its fragmentation, Syria’s territory remains populated with experienced fighters drawn from over a decade of civil war, many of whom possess battlefield leadership and irregular warfare knowledge.
Regional Militias with Local Control: Several groups maintain effective local command, allowing temporary control over strategic urban centers and border areas—providing the interim government with the potential framework for regional defense zones.
International Stabilization Support: The new government is receiving technical and advisory support from multiple countries (notably Jordan, Turkey, and select EU members) to help build national institutions, including military training, mine clearance, and infrastructure protection.
Demobilization and Integration Campaigns: The transitional government has launched a national reconciliation program aiming to disarm and reintegrate factions into a single military structure under civilian authority.
Why Syria Is Still Ranked Just 71st
1. Military Disintegration and Fragmented Control
The former national army has collapsed.
No centralized command-and-control system
Armed groups maintain divergent ideologies and loyalties
Government relies heavily on negotiations and temporary alliances to maintain order
2. Lack of Equipment, Modernization, and Logistics
Much of Syria’s military infrastructure has been destroyed.
Limited access to modern armored vehicles, air defense systems, or heavy artillery
Air Force assets largely inoperable or destroyed
Logistics networks, depots, and communications systems are non-functional or under militia control
3. External Interference and No Strategic Autonomy
Syria remains vulnerable to foreign political and military interference.
Presence of foreign-sponsored militias and proxy forces limits sovereignty
Airspace and territorial integrity routinely violated by external powers
No functional intelligence, cyber, or strategic deterrence capability
Conclusion
Syria is in a post-conflict military vacuum, with the remnants of a once-robust armed force scattered among competing factions. The transitional government's efforts to rebuild a cohesive national defense face formidable structural, political, and logistical barriers. In the context of the MPR—which emphasizes centralized command, force modernization, and independent combat capability—Syria ranks 71st, reflecting its fractured military status and ongoing national reconstruction.
Military Strength and Force Projection
Active Military Personnel: 140,000 (IISS 2023)
Reserve Personnel: 100,000 (CIA World Factbook)
Paramilitary Forces: 80,000 (National Defense Forces, Iranian-backed militias)
Army Personnel: 100,000
Navy Personnel: 6,000
Air Force Personnel: 34,000
Ground Forces
Main Battle Tanks (MBTs): 1,200+ (T-55, T-72, and modernized T-90 from Russia)
Armored Fighting Vehicles (AFVs): 2,000+
Artillery (Towed and Self-Propelled): 1,500+
Air Force
Combat Aircraft: 50+ (SIPRI 2023)
Helicopters: 60+
Transport Aircraft: 20+
Aircraft Breakdown:
MiG-29: 30+ (supplied by Russia)
Su-24: 15 (attack aircraft)
Mi-8 and Mi-17 Helicopters: 40+ (transport and utility helicopters)
Naval Forces
Syria’s naval forces are small and primarily tasked with coastal defense in the Mediterranean Sea. Its capabilities are bolstered by Russian support through its naval base in Tartus.
Frigates and Patrol Vessels: 10+
Missile Capabilities
Syria has an aging missile arsenal, including Soviet-era Scud missiles. During the conflict, the Assad regime has used various missile systems, including ballistic missiles and surface-to-air missiles. Syria also receives missile and air defense support from Russia, particularly the S-300 air defense system, which has enhanced its defensive capabilities.
Strategic Partnerships
Syria’s military survival is heavily dependent on external support. Russia has played a significant role in stabilizing the Assad regime, providing airpower, ground forces, and military hardware. Iran has also been a key ally, supplying fighters through Hezbollah and other militias. Syrian forces work closely with Russian and Iranian advisors, and without this foreign intervention, the regime’s military capacity would be far more limited.
Military History & Combat Experience
Syria’s military history is marked by decades of conventional warfare, insurgency suppression, and more recently, a devastating civil conflict that fractured the state and culminated in the collapse of the Assad regime in 2024. While Syria once fielded one of the largest standing armies in the Arab world, its military institutions have been decimated by internal fragmentation, foreign intervention, and prolonged asymmetric warfare.
Arab-Israeli Wars (1948–1973): Syria participated in the 1948, 1967 (Six-Day War), and 1973 (Yom Kippur War) conflicts against Israel. Despite initial battlefield gains in 1973, Syrian forces suffered significant losses and failed to reclaim the Golan Heights, which remain occupied. These wars shaped the early identity of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) as a conventional force, focused heavily on armored and air defense capabilities.
Lebanon Intervention (1976–2005): Syrian forces intervened in the Lebanese Civil War and maintained a military presence in Lebanon for nearly 30 years. While initially invited as part of the Arab Deterrent Force, Syria later came to dominate Lebanese politics militarily and strategically until its withdrawal following the Cedar Revolution in 2005. The experience further entrenched Syria’s regional influence doctrine.
Internal Repression and Islamist Uprisings (1980s): The Muslim Brotherhood uprising in Hama (1982) led to one of the most brutal episodes in modern Syrian history, with thousands killed by SAA forces. The event demonstrated the regime’s reliance on internal security services and elite units, particularly the Republican Guard and 4th Armored Division, for regime preservation.
Syrian Civil War (2011–2024): The outbreak of the Arab Spring in 2011 triggered mass protests which escalated into civil war. Multiple fronts opened across Syria as rebel groups, Islamist factions, Kurdish forces, and ISIS battled the Assad regime and each other. The SAA suffered extensive defections, battlefield defeats, and logistical collapse. Iran, Hezbollah, and Russia intervened to prevent regime collapse, but the war turned Syria into a patchwork of semi-autonomous regions and foreign-controlled zones.
Russian and Iranian Military Support (2015–2024): Russia’s 2015 intervention reshaped the battlefield. Syrian government forces regained urban centers like Aleppo, Homs, and parts of Damascus with heavy Russian air and artillery support. Iran supplied militias, intelligence support, and advisers. However, the reliance on foreign actors revealed the regime’s declining control over its own armed forces.
Collapse of Assad Regime and Post-2024 Transition: In December 2024, amid mounting economic collapse, internal dissent, and international isolation, the Assad regime fell. The Syrian Arab Armed Forces splintered entirely. The newly formed caretaker government, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, inherited a nation divided between local militias, tribal forces, and warlord-dominated zones. The government is currently attempting to integrate disparate factions into a cohesive national military through reconciliation initiatives and foreign technical assistance.
Syria’s military history has transitioned from regional conventional warfare to internal insurgency, foreign-backed stabilization, and now fragile reconstruction. While Syria has extensive battlefield experience—ranging from urban combat to armored maneuver warfare—it currently lacks a centralized defense apparatus, making its future military cohesion uncertain and its legacy one of fragmentation rather than institutional continuity.
General Information
Syria
Demographics and Geography
Population: ~22.1 million (2024 est.)
Population Available for Military Service: ~7.7 million
Geographic Area: 185,180 km²
Land Boundaries: 2,253 km
Bordering Countries: Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey
Coastline: 193 km
Climate: Mostly arid; Mediterranean along coast
Terrain: Narrow coastal plain, mountain ranges, desert plateau, Euphrates basin
Natural Resources: Petroleum, phosphates, chrome, manganese, asphalt, marble
Proven Oil Reserves: ~2.5 billion barrels
Proven Natural Gas Reserves: ~8.5 trillion cubic feet
Economic Indicators
Defense Budget (2025): ~$1.9 billion USD (estimated, informal channels)
Defense Budget as % of GDP: ~6.5%
GDP (PPP): ~$60 billion USD
GDP per Capita (PPP): ~$2,900
External Debt: ~$10 billion USD
Military Expenditure Trend (last 5 years): Increased due to civil war and Iranian/Russian support
Military Infrastructure and Readiness
Military Service Obligation: Mandatory for men
Primary Defense Focus: Regime protection, civil war operations, internal control
Military Industry Base: Limited; relies on Iran and Russia for sustainment
Cyber/Electronic Warfare Capability: Expanding via Iranian/Russian assistance
Nuclear Warhead Inventory: None (non-nuclear state)
Major Military Districts / Commands: Five regional commands and Republican Guard
Missile Inventory Highlights: Scud-B/C/D, Tochka, Iranian Fateh-110, Zelzal
Reservist Call-up Readiness / Timeline: High due to wartime mobilization
Reservist Force Size: ~300,000
Space, Intelligence, and Strategic Infrastructure
Space or Satellite Programs: None
Military Satellite Inventory: None
Intelligence Infrastructure: Military Intelligence Directorate, Air Force Intelligence, General Intelligence Directorate
Intelligence Sharing Partnerships: Iran, Russia, Hezbollah
Airports (Total): ~94
Major Military Airports: Damascus, Hmeimim (Russian), Tiyas, Shayrat, Aleppo
Naval Power and Maritime Logistics
Merchant Marine Fleet: ~20 vessels
Major Ports: Latakia, Tartus
Naval Infrastructure: Small; limited patrol and missile boats
Naval Replenishment Capability: Russian-operated Tartus base
Domestic Mobility and Infrastructure
Railway Network: ~2,700 km
Roadways: ~69,000 km
Energy and Fuel Logistics
Oil Production: ~80,000 barrels/day (much under Kurdish/SDF control)
Energy Imports: High reliance on Iran; infrastructure heavily damaged
Strategic Petroleum Reserves: Unclear; minimal in wartime conditions
Defense Production and Strategic Forces
Domestic Defense Production: Light weapons, artillery shells, basic drones (with Iranian/Russian help)
Military Installations (Domestic): Major bases around Damascus, Homs, Aleppo
Military Installations (Overseas): None
Foreign Military Personnel Presence: Russia (Hmeimim, Tartus), Iran (IRGC), Hezbollah
Defense Alliances: Iran, Russia, Axis of Resistance
Strategic Airlift Capability: Limited; Russian assistance for long-range operations
Wartime Industrial Surge Capacity: Modest through external partners
Research and Industry Support
Defense R&D Investment: Minimal; focused on tactical drones and rocket systems via Iran
Key Wartime Industries Beyond Defense: Oil refining (partial), textiles, food processing
Political and Administrative Structure
Capital: Damascus
Founding Date: April 17, 1946 (independence from France)
System of Government: Authoritarian presidential republic
