Can Germany’s comprehensive national strength rank among the top five in the world? I can’t see it!
In terms of economic strength alone, Germany can indeed rank among the top five in the world, and to be precise, it should be fourth. No way, because the data is there. In recent years, Germany’s GDP has basically been ranked first in Europe, fourth in the world, and a large percentage of the fifth place.
For example, in 2019, Germany’s GDP reached 3.85 trillion U.S. dollars, ranking first in Europe and the fourth largest economy in the world. In the same year, India, which ranked behind Germany, had a total GDP of 2.85 trillion U.S. dollars, and the difference between the two sides was exactly one trillion U.S. dollars.
In 2020, due to well-known reasons, the German economy has experienced a certain degree of decline. The total GDP that year was approximately US$3.8 trillion. However, this figure can still rank fourth in the world, and it is also the largest economy in Europe, accounting for 4.5% of the total global GDP.
It is worth mentioning that the world’s fifth largest economy in 2020 is no longer India, but the United Kingdom. However, the total GDP of the UK this year was only US$2.71 trillion, which was almost US$1.1 trillion less than Germany. This is already close to Russia.
As we all know, GDP, as the main indicator of the current state of the country’s economy, can effectively reflect a country’s economic strength and market size, which is very convincing.
Of course, even from other angles, the German economy is still impeccable. We must know that Germany is a serious developed country or a major member of the Group of Seven. It has a deep and complete economic system. Various industries in Germany are well developed and show diversified development. Take Germany’s most developed industry as an example. From industry type to material foundation, to talent technology, they are in a leading position in the world. Especially in the key area of manufacturing, Germany can almost be regarded as an industry authority, and German-made products are almost synonymous with high-quality goods. On this point, just look at those well-known German companies. In the automotive field, there are world-class car companies such as Volkswagen, BMW, and Daimler. DMG MORI is the global leader in the field of CNC machine tools. In addition, Germany has ThyssenKrupp and Schaeffler , Carl Zeiss and a large number of world-renowned industrial giants. More importantly, Germany can take advantage of its own industrial hierarchy, and Germany can occupy a certain leading position in the industry, which can also support the stable development of the economy to a certain extent. This is fundamentally different from the single economic model of Saudi Arabia and Qatar that relies on the sale of resources under their feet to achieve wealth freedom. They just belong to the gods, and they don’t have core technology or sustainable industrial structure to support them. After all, no matter how much oil is, there will always be a day when there is no use. It is not enough to sit in the sky. In addition, with the development of science and technology, more alternative energy sources appear, and people have more and more choices. The pressure on resource-exporting countries like them will become greater and greater. If they are not careful, they will be abandoned by the times, and then these so-called “local tyrants” will have to return to their old ways. But countries like Germany have no such worries. Because of their talents and technological advantages, they are always at the top of the industrial chain, able to control the most profitable industries, or use technological advantages to divide most of the profits. It belongs to the type that doesn’t do much work and makes more money than anyone else. This is a height that most developing countries, even developed countries, cannot reach. For example, South Korea, as a newly promoted developed country, still lacks foundation in many fields and cannot stand at the top of the industrial chain. This means that South Korea will lose a large amount of profits because of these shortcomings, and even risk being restrained by others. After all, they are using other people’s things, such as patented equipment and technical raw materials, which all cost money. And if people say they don’t sell you, you really can’t help it. Just like the Korean semiconductors in the previous two years, when several high-end raw materials imported from Japan were cut off, a quarter of South Korea’s semiconductor industry was on the verge of collapse. I have to say that it is really not easy for Germany to develop to the point it is today. You know, if you look at the size of the country alone, Germany does not have much advantage. Its land area is only 357,000 square kilometers, and its population is only over 80 million. What’s more worth mentioning is that he was also a defeated country in World War II. The war that year caused Germany to pay an extremely heavy price, so let’s not talk about the reparation of land and indemnities. The key is the collapse of the entire national system. At that time, Germany was almost broken. Looking around, it was full of ruined walls and hungry everywhere. It is really rare for Germany to get up from the ruins and walk to this position. Although there are some reasons for external funding, Germany’s own efforts cannot be ignored. The rigorous and serious attitude of this nation is worth learning from the whole world. Of course, all of the above is more biased towards the economic side. Although Germany’s economic strength is strong, it does not mean that its comprehensive national strength can reach this height. After all, for a country, economic strength is only part of its national strength, and other aspects cannot be delayed. However, Germany is just such an “unsound” country, and it has shortcomings in some respects. For example, in terms of military affairs, Germany’s strength is quite a drag. In the impression of most of us, Germany’s military strength should be very strong. It’s no problem to beat England, kick France, or even single Europe. But in fact, that is only history, and times have changed. As the saying goes, 30 years in Hedong and 30 years in Hexi, Germany now can’t even compare to Italy. According to the latest data provided by the Global Firepower Index, Germany’s military power in 2021 can only be ranked 15th in the world, while Italy is ranked 12th. In terms of the specific data in all aspects, Germany is a bit unbearable to look directly at it. For example, in terms of military strength, as of March 2021, Germany’s standing strength is only 185,000, ranking 28th in the world. Even with the reserve of 30,000 people, the total force is only 215,000. Italy is much more powerful. Although the standing army of 175,000 is less than that of Germany, it has a reserve force of 20,000 and a paramilitary force of 176,000. The total strength of the armed forces can reach 371,000. In terms of equipment, Germany is even more terrible. In terms of aviation capabilities, Germany has only 700 military aircraft, including 137, 75 attack aircraft, 72 transport aircraft, and 56 armed helicopters. In contrast, Italy is equipped with nearly 900 military aircraft of various types, mainly including 94 fighters, 92 attack aircraft, 39 transport aircraft, and 59 armed helicopters. In terms of land, there are currently only more than 200 main battle tanks equipped by Germany, and only a hundred artillery. The only one with more than armored vehicles is more than 5,000. Italy is equipped with more than 200 tanks, more than 8,500 armored vehicles, and more than 150 artillery. As for the equipment at sea, Germany is almost unworthy. At present, the German Navy is equipped with more than 80 types of warships, of which the main combat capabilities are 10 frigates and 6 conventional submarines. There are no destroyers and no aircraft carriers. The Italian Navy is equipped with 249 ships of various types, mainly including 2 aircraft carriers, 4 large destroyers, 12 frigates, and 8 submarines. The size of this navy is much larger than that of Germany. Obviously, Germany’s military strength on paper is not even comparable to that of Italy, both in terms of number and level of equipment. Of course, the current German army is far worse than the data shows. There are problems with both the level of equipment and the quality of the soldiers. In terms of equipment, the German army has failed to keep up with maintenance due to the year-round depletion of military equipment, so 60% of the equipment is unavailable. In terms of personnel, since Germany is taking the path of contract soldiers, soldiers are just like ordinary office workers. They work from 9 to 5 and have weekends and weekends. Work is easy, and the salary is still high. All of them have been eaten into a federal fat house. It doesn’t look like an army that can fight. Therefore, the current Germany is no longer as courageous as it used to be in the military. Of course, this is not to blame Germany, and others can’t help it. Because of the defeat in World War II, Germany was unable to develop its military power normally afterwards. Therefore, Germany can only abandon its efforts in this area and concentrate on economic development. If the German military restrictions are released, I believe it will not be long before it will be a powerful Germany. It is estimated that this is the so-called fish and bear’s paw, not both! Regardless of the reason, Germany is indeed dragging its feet in the military, which directly lowers Germany’s comprehensive national strength. Therefore, in general, although Germany is currently rich and the leader of the European economy, it does not have much military strength and its overall national strength is not strong. Not to mention the top five in the world, it would be nice to be in the top ten in the world
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