The Military Balance is an annual assessment held by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) that covers military capabilities and defence economics of 171 countries worldwide.
The IISS Military Balance 2016 book is now available for purchase via Routledge.
The Saudi will provide updates of today’s press release.
10:11
Abdelaziz Alkhamis asked if the recent Yemen war has affected the military balance.
Barrie answered this question and emphasised that Gulf states were redirecting military efforts to Yemen instead of using them to combat ISIS due to their close ties with Saudi Arabia. This has been detrimental to the U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition.
It is unclear how Saudi Arabia will get from the current state of war to reach a political solution.
10:10am
Armed UAV’s have been sent from China to Nigeria. China’s arms exports to Africa illustrate a growing trend in Chinese military sales.
10:00am
Middle Eastern statistics are becoming increasingly hard to obtain due to the ongoing conflicts. It is estimated that spending has decreased by 1-2% on last year.
Russia played an active role in relations between Iran and the West.
Barry, Senior Fellow for Land Warfare, says Russia’s new land capabilities may be able to evade anti-tank weaponry. Stated that Western nations should take note of Russia’s new Armata tanks featuring unmanned turrets.
09:45am
Western dominance in military technology is “eroding”; China is beginning to sell technology such as UAV’s (Unmanned Ariel Vehicles) to states like Nigeria. Asia’s defence spending has increased by 5.6% and spends $100 billion more than NATO’s European members.
