The ranking, included as part of the outlet’s "best countries" rankings, listed Russia as having the strongest military in the world, based on the perceptions of global survey respondents.
The US was ranked second, followed by China in third place and Israel in fourth. Ukraine was ranked sixth, following an influx of weapons and training by Western backers.
The military strength ranking contributes to Russia’s overall "power" subranking, for which they are listed at third in the world, behind the US and China.
The rankings, which include 87 countries, are developed based on a survey presented to more than 17,000 people worldwide. The survey asks respondents to score countries based on 73 attributes, which cover areas including cultural influence, quality of life and openness to business.
Russia was ranked at 37th overall. However, the survey methodology changed in response to Russia's special military operation in Ukraine. The survey was not field in Russia in 2022 or 2023, but was instead field in Romania to maintain regional balance.