The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, is an alliance between countries from North America and Europe. It was formed in 1949 after the signing of the Washington Treaty and currently has 32 member countries. The countries pledge to uphold democracy and create a collective defense to support one another in whatever comes their way.
Less than half of NATO members own military submarines, but this is a far cry from most other military powers worldwide, except Russia and China. Although NATO’s true power is its combined air force, these submarines add significantly to the alliance and its control of the high seas.
In the age of modern warfare, submarines have been indispensable assets since their advent in the American Revolution. During World War II, these submersibles carried out covert strikes on Axis and Allied vessels alike, ultimately finding a place for themselves as a tactical necessity in any navy. However, over the years, only the top quartile of naval forces on the planet have accumulated a significant amount of submarines, and most reside within NATO forces.
To determine the NATO countries with the most military submarines, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed GlobalFirePower, an annually updated website tracking defense-related statistics of 145 nations. Countries were ranked by the number of military submarines in active service. We also added the GlobalFirePower PowerIndex score, which denotes a country’s overall military strength, with lower scores denoting greater power. We included supplemental information regarding the total naval fleet size per country and the types of submarines in each fleet. We excluded countries that did not have any submarines in their navy.
The United States hosts one of the largest and most advanced submarine fleets in the world. The subs within its fleet include the Ohio-class, Los Angeles-class, and Virginia-class, to name a few. The Ohio class is perhaps the most famous of the group, as it carries a significant amount of nuclear warheads capable of striking targets thousands of miles away.
Why Is This Important?
NATO members work together to tackle crisis management, promote democracy, and create peaceful resolutions to disputes. Its principle of collective defense is the group’s hallmark and speaks to the cooperation encouraged between countries.
Here is a look at the NATO countries with the most submarines.
14. Poland
- Number of submarines in active service: 1
- Total naval fleet size: 45 – #15 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.2917 – #21 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Kilo-class, Kobben-class
13. Portugal
- Number of submarines in active service: 2
- Total naval fleet size: 113 – #10 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.5609 – #38 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Type 209, Tridente-class
12. Netherlands
- Number of submarines in active service: 3
- Total naval fleet size: 112 – #11 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.5644 – #40 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Walrus-class
11. Spain
- Number of submarines in active service: 3
- Total naval fleet size: 168 – #7 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.2882 – #20 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Peral-class
10. Canada
- Number of submarines in active service: 4
- Total naval fleet size: 67 – #13 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.3813 – #27 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Victoria-class
9. Sweden
- Number of submarines in active service: 5
- Total naval fleet size: 353 – #2 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.4009 – #29 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Abborren-class, Laxen-class
8. Norway
- Number of submarines in active service: 6
- Total naval fleet size: 25 – #18 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.5664 – #41 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Ula-class
7. Germany
- Number of submarines in active service: 6
- Total naval fleet size: 64 – #14 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.2847 – #19 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: 212A
6. Italy
- Number of submarines in active service: 8
- Total naval fleet size: 309 – #3 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.1863 – #10 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Argonauta-class, Balilla-class
5. France
- Number of submarines in active service: 9
- Total naval fleet size: 128 – #8 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.1878 – #11 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Rubis-class, Suffren-class, Triomphant-class
4. United Kingdom
- Number of submarines in active service: 10
- Total naval fleet size: 117 – #9 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.1443 – #6 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Vanguard-class, Trafalgar-class
3. Greece
- Number of submarines in active service: 11
- Total naval fleet size: 187 – #5 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.4349 – #32 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Glavkos-class, Okeanos-class
2. Turkey
- Number of submarines in active service: 12
- Total naval fleet size: 186 – #6 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.1697 – #8 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Balao-class, Dumlupinar, Sakarya
1. United States
- Number of submarines in active service: 64
- Total naval fleet size: 472 – #1 out of 32 NATO countries
- GlobalFirepower PowerIndex score: 0.0699 – #1 most powerful out of 145 countries
- Submarines in fleet: Ohio-class, Los Angeles-class, Virginia-class
Take This Retirement Quiz To Get Matched With An Advisor Now (Sponsored)
Are you ready for retirement? Planning for retirement can be overwhelming, that’s why it could be a good idea to speak to a fiduciary financial advisor about your goals today.
Start by taking this retirement quiz right here from SmartAsset that will match you with up to 3 financial advisors that serve your area and beyond in 5 minutes. Smart Asset is now matching over 50,000 people a month.
Click here now to get started.
The post This NATO Member Has 64 Submarines appeared first on 24/7 Wall St..