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The Military Balance 2008 Press Coverage

 

  • 03 Jul 2008 - - Reuters - How big is Iran's military? MB 2008 coverThere are nearly 1,700 tanks including some 100 Zulfiqar locally produced main battle tanks. A large number of Iran's tanks are elderly British-made Chieftains and U.S.-made M-60s. -- Soviet-made T-54 and T-55s, T-59s, T-62s, and T-72s were also part of the inventory, all captured from the Iraqis or acquired from North Korea and China. -- The latest Military Balance report from the International Institute for Strategic Studies says that some of the tanks' serviceability may be in doubt.
  • 18 Jul 2008 - - RIA Novosti - China ranks third in the world in military expenses MB 2008 coverThe Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) published these figures in its 2008 annual report. There are other estimates, but they are not radically different. Many research organizations and the media tend to base their comparison of countries' military might on their defense budgets, although their estimates are often disputed, sometimes by the objects of their studies. Although such comparisons are very relative, they are a point of departure for analyzing the military potentialities of
  • 19 May 2008 - - Deutsche Press-Agentur - Loyalty of Myanmar troops doubted after cyclone disaster MB 2008 coverMyanmar's armed forces, called the Tatmadaw, has been the regime's main pillar of strength since it took power in 1962. According to a study conducted by the 'International Institute of Strategic Studies' in 2007, the country's military has a strength of 350,000 men.
  • 16 May 2008 - - Associated Press - Venezuela weapons worry US, Colombia MB 2008 coverBut per-capita comparisons by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies show Venezuela's defense budget of $2.6 billion is second only to Chile, which built up a large defense industry during the 1973-90 military regime of Gen. Augusto Pinochet.
  • 09 May 2008 - - Associated Press - Myanmar seizes UN aid supplies, 'not ready' to let in US MB 2008 cover"The Military Balance 2008," a widely recognized assessment on armaments around the world, puts the number of helicopters at 66. "Even if they were all serviceable it's not even a drop in the ocean. The task is so awesome it would phase even a sophisticated force like the British, French or Germans," Brookes said.
  • 09 May 2008 - - Associated Press - Relief falls far short in Myanmar, aid organizers say MB 2008 coverMyanmar has only a few dozen helicopters and most are small and old, according to "The Military Balance 2008," a widely recognized assessment on armaments around the world. The country also has about 15 transport planes but most are small jets not able to carry hundreds of tons of supplies, said Andrew Brookes, an aerospace specialist at the IISS, an independent think tank.
  • 24 Apr 2008 - - Al-Ahram Weekly - Can Bush attack again? MB 2008 coverThe US-Israeli path to war is not free of potholes and obstructions. For one, Iran has military capacities large enough to cause significant losses were hostilities to break out. The London International Institute for Strategic Studies report on the balance of powers in 2006 offers tangible information in this regard. Iran produces some 2,000 types of defensive arms, from ammunition to airplanes, and from missile launching systems to satellites. It exports military equipment to more than 30 countries, among
  • 23 Apr 2008 - - Red Pepper - Colombia’s war in the Andes MB 2008 coverIt is difficult to calculate the number of deaths related to the violence since 1948. Figures of 200,000 and even 300,000 have been quoted for the number of people killed from 1948 to 1956 but that figure is undoubtedly imprecise. Figures from 1964 onwards also vary. The International Institute for Strategic Studies estimates that from 1963 to 2000, 47,000 people died as a direct consequence of the violence, while Amnesty International estimates that 60,000 people died in the much shorter period from 1985 t
  • 15 Apr 2008 - - Khaleej Times - Mad about Middle East MB 2008 coverAccording to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies, there are currently 17 United Nations peace support operations around the world. Those include longstanding, and modest missions, such as the United Nation Truce Supervision Organisation [Middle East], or UNTSO, established in 1948 and composed of 150 personnel; to the larger United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, UNIFIL, established in 1976 (on a six-month mandate) which has been reinforced more recently and beefed up to 11,563
  • 15 Apr 2008 - - Middle East Times - Israel, Syria militaries set side by side MB 2008 coverSyria has also updated its Soviet-era arsenal though much of it remains far inferior to what Western technology can throw at it. For example, the primary troop carrier used by Israel is the U.S.-made M113 armored personnel carrier (APC), far better built than the Soviet-era BTR used by the Syrians. Here is a brief breakdown of how the two sides compare, according to "The Military Balance 2008," published by the London-based International Institute of Strategic Studies:
  • 13 Apr 2008 - - Associated Press - Libya Allegedly Went on Gun-Buying Spree MB 2008 coverEarly on, the arms traffickers themselves had hinted that Libya would not have been the final stop for the shipment. The country of 5.5 million has an army of only 76,000 personnel, according to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.
  • 10 Apr 2008 - - Washington Times - Iraqi air force lifted by support missions: Airmen backed soldiers in Basra MB 2008 coverBefore the Gulf War In 1991, the Iraqi air force had 50,000 personnel, compared with only 1,200 today, ac-cording to the Military Balance, the International Institute for Strategic Studies' annual assessment of the military capabilities and defense economics of 170 countries worldwide.
  • 07 Apr 2008 - - Bloomberg - Chavez's Threats, Commodities Boom Converge to Fuel Arms Race MB 2008 coverColombia is buying 24 Israeli Kfir fighter jets. Brazil plans to build its first nuclear submarine. Ecuador will boost military spending 19 percent this year. Overall, regional arms outlays surged 55 percent over four years to $38.4 billion in 2007, says the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
  • 25 Mar 2008 - - New York Times - Make Sudan an Offer It Can’t Refuse MB 2008 coverThe first requirement of a cordon sanitaire, however, would be to cut all air links, which would require carrier-based air strikes to destroy the Sudanese air force’s 51 combat aircraft, 25 transports, and 44 helicopters (all figures from the International Institute for Strategic Studies); its fuel, munitions and maintenance facilities; and the few runways capable of supporting heavy transports and fighters. Were Chad to approve a small expeditionary force of America’s A-10 tactical-air-support planes, whic
  • 12 Mar 2008 - - Canberra Times - Security thinking waits for big shift MB 2008 coverIraq is struggling to create a unified and stable nation amid appalling terrorism and violence. The future of Afghanistan looks shaky as the Taliban regroups and NATO partners are reluctant to send more troops. East Timor remains one of the world's poorest countries. Most disturbing is the International Institute of Strategic Studies' last annual survey. It says that al-Qaeda is resurgent, and Osama bin Laden continues to claim that "as you violate our security, so we violate yours". Indeed, one of the 2004
  • 05 Mar 2008 - - Associated Press - Venezuela Troops Head to Colombia Border MB 2008 coverVenezuela's military currently has about 100,000 regular troops and a growing force of reservists that now totals 280,000, said Muller, who in retirement is vice president of Chavez's socialist party. Colombia's U.S.-backed military has 255,000 regular troops and 62,000 reservists, according to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.
  • 28 Feb 2008 - - Al Jazeera - Soldiering on after Putin MB 2008 coverRussia spent about 821bn rubles ($33.6bn), about 15 per cent of total government expenditure, on defence in 2007, according to the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies.
  • 26 Feb 2008 - - Daily Telegraph - US-India defence deal 'to counter China' MB 2008 coverAccording to the International Institute of Strategic Studies, India's military expenditure grew by 24 per cent last year, as it has become one of the largest buyers of defence equipment. India's defence purchases are projected to double to more than £15 billion by 2012, climbing to £40 billion by 2022.
  • 23 Feb 2008 - - Associated Press of Pakistan - Mehsud behind Bhutto’s killing; most deadly threat to West: British thinktank MB 2008 coverThe IISS assessment has described Pakistan’s economic performance and wide-ranging structural reforms as impressive. It also referred to acceleration in economic growth, improvement in public spending, reduction in debt burden, increased fiscal efficiency and lowering of poverty rates. On Pakistan’s political situation, the institute’s analysts said despite vulnerabilities, President Pervez Musharraf continues to be the most effective figure in the country’s governance and would continue to handle counte
  • 18 Feb 2008 - - Bloomberg - Afghanistan Blast Kills 80, Injures 50 in Kandahar MB 2008 coverTaliban insurgents in Afghanistan have broadened the scope of their operations against Afghan authorities and NATO forces, the International Institute for Strategic Studies said in its edition of “Military Balance'' published on Feb. 5. “Insurgents have sought to increase the scope of their own operations by resorting increasingly to suicide attacks as the weapon of choice,'' the group said.