What country has the best army? ?

Kojak

You have set unrealistic parameters....

Under the impossible scenario you have created..... the variables are reduced to physical fitness, command capability, and luck

America has a distinct advantage in the command capability because our troops are generally better educated and better trained than most Armies.....In addition our depth......ability of the lowest soldier to assume command and function effectively is greater than most Armies
We also have greater experience using the tools of modern warfare.....often in other Armies if a technician is killed the weapon can not be fired or repaired.....we train in depth and cross train

I have trained with foreign Armies around the world ( British, Vietnamese, Korean, Bajan , Iranian, Lebanese, etc )..... and while some are in generally better physical condition..... ?? ..... none can match us in command capability.....

Not speaking from a patriotic position......simply from the facts

EDIT....You wrote America lost the Vietnam War.....not exactly true...... America withdrew ALL combat troops..... TWO YEARS LATER..the North Vietnamese defeated the South Vietnamese.....How could we lose a war when we were gone for two years?

Fact is America has NEVER lost a war.....

I am not going to get into a pi$$ing contest over who is best between Britain and America......I have served with several fine British units .....including your SAS... I have respect for them.....especially the enlisted blokes..... I even served under a British colonel..... man for man there are none braver than the British Tommy..... BUT..... the fact remains.....You lost to us twice ( Revolutionary War / War of 1812 )..... You invaded Europe ( Dunkirk) and got your butt kicked, while we invaded Europe (Normandy) and kicked the Germans ***..... history / performance would lead the unbias to conclude America got the job done while the British failed

You ask people not to post "patriotic" crap.....then do it yourself.... I gave you my professional opinion based on 30 years in the military.... WITHOUT BIAS.....

Medium Dave

oh, this is just going to be a matter of national pride. Everyone will pick their own country.

I'm English, and I'm going to suggest that the SAS are the hardest, saltiest mother-lovers in the world, and make the Navy Seals look like a bunch of baby girls.

Of course, I wouldn't actually *mean* it, but it's as much sense as you'll get from any other answer.

EDIT: for William Wallace, above - nice point, but I'd refer you to the 'lions led by donkeys' quote. German generals were quite envious of the fighting British tommy; they reckoned with German leadership and British grit, any war would be won in an instant...

EDIT II: also, we have the gurkhas, who are effectively indestructable ;)

EDIT III: to the 'AMERICA, FXCK YEAH!!!' mob - a little joke for you.

Q: what's the difference between a British soldier and an Iraqi insurgent?

(to which the response is, generally, a tired 'don't know')

A: Congratulations; you have just qualified to join the US Military!

Little Red

Of course all Americans are going to say USA because most of them think they are the greatest country in the world (sorry, but it's true - e.g. someone above just said 'USA - dah!'). I don't think they would have the best army though, I think Germany or China would be the most likely. I can also see another country sneak up from nowhere and win though. I can see some countries who are war torn fight back with a vengeance if they were supplied with tanks, planes, guns etc.

I'm Australian and know we wouldn't win because we're all too laid back!

Chris P

In your scenario of a fair man for man fight:

1) The British Army
2) The USMC
3) the Israeli Defence Forces
4) The US Army
5) Germany/ Canada

N.B. some smaller nations have fantastic armed forces (Sweden and the Netherlands spring to mind) but are really too small to be included - a bit of an unknown. I trained with the swedes and they're bloody good.

Yo Yo Mama

The problem is that there is no "all things being equal." World War II was decided by logistics. US manufacturing was out of the reach of the Axis powers and could just keep churning out more weapons. It was very late in the war before the quality and lethality of the weapons systems began to approach the Germans, but the Germans couldn't maintain their supply lines and the Allies could because the allies churned out hundreds of heavy bombers while the Germans churned out light fighter bombers that just couldn't finish the job over Britain and couldn't reach US convoys.

Both Iraq wars were decided by air power neutralizing the enemies command and control, communications, supply lines and defensive positions in advance of the infantry and armor.

If you mean hand-to-hand, I'd always thought the Koreans would be toughest, and they are game and train hard, but in a bare knuckles challenge with one of their division champions, large for a Korean at 160 pounds, I proved the benefits of a 25 pound weight advantage and coming from a culture that consumes a lot of bone-building dairy. He hit me several times early on, and hard. Hurt like hell, but didn't break anything. I thrust kicked him once and broke four of his ribs and the fight was over. Genetics and diet matter and we've had a long period of good nutrition here.

On the other hand I found the Koreans guarding in the DMZ could run up and down the mountains like mountain goats carrying loads almost as heavy as themselves, and do it all day, whereas I couldn't do it once. In many combat situations the force that can run to the fight and still have energy for the battle wins. I was used to running 7 miles over flat terrain. If we started from equal distance to the high ground through foothills, they'd beat me there every time and I'd be crawling uphill into their bullets. So one-on-one in hand-to-hand I have an advantage. But platoon versus platoon with the weapons we had in the 70s, where they had what we had because we equipped them the same as ourselves....don't know. And the Koreans have since developed a taste for "Yo-gu-ru-tu." So I imagine their bones have gotten a bit less breakable.

Mike

to tel the honest truth i have always been taught that the most structured and efficient army in the world (if you include the Navy and RAF) is the British Army

one additional note the largest army in the world is that of the Swiss, every man ageed between 18 and 55 (i think thts max age not sure) is in the Swiss peoples army and has a rifle at home
however no body ever attacks them because they have all our gold (and make nice watches!)

lakey700

It would be the British.
Yo it's me made me laugh. When I was In Iraq, we done a joint operation with US Army. We were trying to catch an insurgent that was trying to escape. We came across a chain link fence and the American Sergeant in charge had to radio through to his Commander and ask if he could break the fence. That doesn't sound like initiative to me.
Despite the British being a very small country fighting two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, having poor kit and equipment and a government that doesn't care about them they still do the job to an excellent standard with minimal fuss.
I have also worked with American and French special forces and to be honest they hardly compare to an ordinary British infantry battalion.
The British have demonstrated their ability to go in and get the job done many times (Falklands, Sierra Leone, Bosnia, Kosovo).
As far as I am aware the US Army soldiers get promoted due to time served and do not have to go on any specific courses (I may be wrong).

RN Commando

Pound for Pound, the U.K would leave the Army behind except for maybe the Paras, SAS, and send in 3 Commando Brigade Royal Marines.. Not being patriotic, but they undergo the hardest and best training in the world.. bar none.. a FACT! even the S.B.S by themselves would cause all other forces trouble!

"Per Mare - Per Terram"

bob6575

Anyone who says USA is a total moron.. or at least an American, although that adds up to pretty much the same thing. Your standard Brittish squaddie (soldier) is trained to the same standard as US Marines, and any 'soldiers' above this level are trained to a standard far higher than any other country, especially America.

rycally00

uk our boys and gals would kick any ones ****

Daddy Warbucks

Do you have to ask USA is the most Powerful Military in this world

erm

man for man, lb for lb, the UK would win

most professional armed forces in the world, wrote the book on special forces, cool under pressure

unlike them trigger happy yanks

question - who killed more brits in gulf war? A - iraq? or B - USA?

answer - B - USA

i rest my case

when youre an island nation as old as the UK, you cant help but learn to be well defended

it is no coincidence that the british empire is the largest empire the worlds ever seen

why?

because we had a superior military to keep it together

until it eventually outgrew us

all empires fall eventually

and all empires fall before they grow to be as big as the british empire

vdv_desantnik

Russia - the troops are more used to hardship than any other force and will fight to the end and further

Sean C

I don't know how many times I've seen this same exact question, but I'll answer it anyway. USA! All the way!

Marlon

America!!! F@#k yeah!

City Cowgirl

I have said this in a similar question before. Its just like asking which country is the best. Everyone will vote for their own, because everyone is biased.

But just because I have to point out the obvious here, Australia would kick it for sure! lol. :D

paul s

British, without a doubt.

Bill R

only an idiot would say they're own country due to pride
in the scenario you just described it would come down to quality and training, and to the person who said china has good training they are dead wrong, china has very limited training

but since you said all sides have the same numbers it would come down to quality of equipment, and America spends billions more than the closest competitor because they simply have more to spend, Britain has great training and technology, so the best 2 would be

1.America because of money, great training, and best equipment on the planet

2. Great Britain because of great training and great technology

russia is left out because they dont focus on quality of equipment but more on overwhelming numbers and the ability to replace what they lose quikly and therefore they lose way more men and equipment then anyone else, china uses the same concept

*EDIT* to all America haters out there, just remember America has never had to be bailed out of any conflict by anyone, dont you people notice that when theres a conflict people ask America for help, not Britain, definitly not Germany, America has never lost a a military conflict, Veitnam was political and so is Iraq even though that is won already, the Taliban was taken out by America and since they went into Iraq they asked NATO for help (a mistake and it will never happen again)

Foreign Minister

The USA has greater force projection capabilities than the rest of the world put together. No, I am not exaggerating about this.

wayneypayney

united kingdom - usa
they have the same weapons
only usa has more lol

my2cents

geez if these armies just met in an open field, then I would have to say either the British or the Israelis are the best trained (your question basically). The US is the best not because it is the best at 1 thing, but because it is very good at everything. US would be after British and Israeli probably.

It would be really tough to say which would beat the others in a "fair fight" because it simply hasn't happened before, and they are all too good to really have an answer.

Dave- LOL great one.

Lizzy- This scenario implies that the chinese would have the same numbers as everyone else = slaughtered in the opening "matches". Not that their numbers would matter anyways.

mcguinnessconnor

well you can rule out france cause theyve never won a war.
i dont even think canada has a military.lol
what it really comes down to is the individual soldiers training.
and since there is really no way of knowing who has a better trained military then you can never really know.
I'm in the army and i'd like to say the U.S. but then again you probably have some chineese soldier whose been training since he was born

mozark281

the Germans are very tactical and they have good planes

OSweet

The U.S. has the best technology and training, so would win any fight in which they used their equipment and the other side used its.

But if numbers of men and the equipment were identical, I'd go with the Israelis. They're smart, shrewd and highly motivated: They fight knowing that if they lose, their nation will be wiped off the map and their people/race might fall prey to genocide.

Maggie

USA - Always!!

Ray.isBack

Y'all are just the most amusing people in the world ''not the yanks they are use to showers and toilet paper'' Do plan this stuff out or are you just fools naturally Must give it to you brits y'all are funny ......you just don't know it
We be bad we don't shower nor wipe

Destiny

I am from the US, and proud of it... as a matter of fact, my husband plans to join the Army in a few months.

Still, I'd have to say, weapon for weapon, people for people, Israel would win. They are raised from before they enter middle school to be skillful fighters and trained gunmen. Plus, they have God on their side... who can win against God?

Yo it's Me

USA

Details:

Initiative = our NCOs are the smartest and best at taking the initiative. NCOs are the glue that holds an army together and ours are the best (same with the rest of the enlisted and officer corps).

Heart of Darkness

Although I think that what they do is wrong (long story!), I think it's obvious that time and time again (until recently in Lebanon) that the Israel Defense Force (IDF) is, pound for pound, the best military.

I think the Brits are good, but not as good as the IDF.

Whoever said the Germans were apparently hasn't been to Germany or worked with any German troops. I swear they'd stop in the middle of a firefight because it was break time.

I think the US military is good, but seeing what our young people are like as whole while a US Army instructor, I really think the US military has gone downhill since 9/11.

Boo Boo Keys

U.S.A.!

foxy9837

KOJAK.....The US did not win the War of 1812. There is admitedly some dispute about who actually won but most believe that it was the British. Cant argue about the Revolutionary War though....pretty obvious that one. As for who has the best.....the shear size of the US forces make them currently unbeatable (whether that makes them the best is irrelevant - the Germans had amongst the best troops in WW2 but still lost) but the British have pulled off some remarkable military victories with limited resources ie: the Falklands and Sierra Leone. http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Who_won_and_who_lost_in_the_War_of_1812

nomore mr. nice guy

Kojak, Even if the U.S. had stayed on for three, five, or more years in Vietnam, the U.S. would have lost. American leaders knew this and, therefore wisely, pulled out the vast majority of American troops from Vietnam. Washington knew the North Vietnamese could sustain their war effort indefinitely. So, yes, the U.S. did lose the war in Vietnam.

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