United Kingdom Tops Europe in External Debt With $9.6 Trillion

As Europe continues to fight rising inflation and geopolitical instability, the United Kingdom stands out from the rest of continent for one particular reason. The UK has its own fight with a massive $9.6 trillion in external debt, a figure that practically dwarfs the combined military budgets of most NATO members. Although much of this can be chalked up to the UK’s financial sector, the pure size of these liabilities and exposure sets it apart from most other European powers. This figure also holds a bearing on how any given country conducts itself on the global stage and can influence decisions on going to war based on where these debts might lie. Here, 24/7 Wall St. is taking a closer look at the European countries with the largest external debt.

To determine the European countries with the most external debt, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the 2025 Military Strength Ranking from Global Firepower, an annually updated defense-related statistics website with information on 145 countries. Global Firepower ranked 145 countries based on their PowerIndex, a composite of over 60 measures in categories such as military might, financials, logistical capability, and geography. The smaller the PowerIndex value the more powerful a nation’s theoretical conventional fighting capability is. We ranked these countries based on their external debt. We also included supplemental information regarding purchasing power parity, foreign exchange/gold reserves, defense budgets, a composition of military assets, as well as the overall military strength score.

Here is a look at the military powers with the most external debt in Europe:

Why Are We Covering This?

Understanding the military dynamics in Europe is important considering the continent’s deeply rooted geopolitical challenges going forward. Historically, Europe has been marked by wars, shifting alliances, and territorial disputes, and yet it still remains a key player on the global stage. At the same time, alliances like the EU or NATO are some of the most powerful in terms of their influence on the world. Whether it is a question of NATO’s expansion or Russia’s campaign in Eastern Europe, these military forces tilt the region’s balance of power.

38. Kosovo

• External debt: $2,750,000,000
• Military defense budget: $260,715,150 – #128 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $1,245,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $23,794,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 0
• Total military vehicles: 737
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 4.9141 – #144 out of 145

To back up its finances, Kosovo has 15,500 total military personnel, which is composed of 10,000 active personnel, 5,000 reserves, and 500 paramilitary forces. Kosovo also has a total population of 1.977 million.

37. Montenegro

• External debt: $2,958,500,000
• Military defense budget: $148,100,000 – #136 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $1,574,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $17,115,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 11
• Total military vehicles: 471
• Total naval vessels: 14
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.9216 – #127 out of 145

To back up its finances, Montenegro has 7,850 total military personnel, which is composed of 2,350 active personnel and 5,500 paramilitary forces. Montenegro also has a total population of 599,849.

36. Moldova

• External debt: $4,565,500,000
• Military defense budget: $1,710,000,000 – #73 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $5,453,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $38,969,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 3
• Total military vehicles: 500
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 3.2555 – #134 out of 145

To back up its finances, Moldova has 77,500 total military personnel, which is composed of 8,500 active personnel, 67,000 reserves, and 2,000 paramilitary forces. Moldova also has a total population of 3.600 million.

35. Albania

• External debt: $7,312,000,000
• Military defense budget: $558,862,420 – #101 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $6,455,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $49,592,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 19
• Total military vehicles: 1,796
• Total naval vessels: 19
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.6815 – #78 out of 145

To back up its finances, Albania has 9,100 total military personnel, which is composed of 6,600 active personnel, 2,000 reserves, and 500 paramilitary forces. Albania also has a total population of 3.107 million.

34. Bosnia and Herzegovina

• External debt: $7,760,500,000
• Military defense budget: $216,400,000 – #131 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $9,205,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $63,769,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 22
• Total military vehicles: 720
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 3.0799 – #131 out of 145

To back up its finances, Bosnia and Herzegovina has 18,770 total military personnel, which is composed of 12,770 active personnel and 6,000 reserves. Bosnia and Herzegovina also has a total population of 3.799 million.

33. North Macedonia

• External debt: $11,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $388,421,700 – #114 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $5,015,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $42,444,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 20
• Total military vehicles: 1,108
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.4042 – #112 out of 145

To back up its finances, North Macedonia has 7,250 total military personnel, which is composed of 9,000 active personnel, 60,000 reserves, and 3,500 paramilitary forces. North Macedonia also has a total population of 2.136 million.

32. Iceland

• External debt: $22,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $312,400,000 – #121 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $5,809,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $26,155,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 0
• Total military vehicles: 150
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 3.5181 – #135 out of 145

Iceland also has a total population of 364,036, and no real army to speak of.

31. Estonia

• External debt: $26,400,000,000
• Military defense budget: $1,463,360,000 – #77 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $2,593,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $57,377,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 5
• Total military vehicles: 1,685
• Total naval vessels: 8
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.2917 – #107 out of 145

To back up its finances, Estonia has 96,500 total military personnel, which is composed of 7,700 active personnel, 78,800 reserves, and 10,000 paramilitary forces. Estonia also has a total population of 1.194 million.

30. Bulgaria

• External debt: $27,138,500,000
• Military defense budget: $1,373,232,000 – #80 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $46,334,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $214,061,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 65
• Total military vehicles: 4,914
• Total naval vessels: 36
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.2563 – #61 out of 145

To back up its finances, Bulgaria has 40,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 37,000 active personnel and 3,000 reserves. Bulgaria also has a total population of 6.783 million.

29. Serbia

• External debt: $35,200,000,000
• Military defense budget: $2,287,461,000 – #68 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $27,569,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $162,213,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 110
• Total military vehicles: 3,683
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.2576 – #63 out of 145

To back up its finances, Serbia has 627,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 25,000 active personnel, 2,000 reserves, and 600,000 paramilitary forces. Serbia also has a total population of 6.652 million.

28. Belarus

• External debt: $44,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $1,077,900,000 – #87 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $8,118,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $254,407,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 185
• Total military vehicles: 6,916
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.3954 – #70 out of 145

To back up its finances, Belarus has 263,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 63,000 active personnel, 145,000 reserves, and 55,000 paramilitary forces. Belarus also has a total population of 9.501 million.

27. Lithuania

• External debt: $44,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $2,388,900,000 – #66 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $6,168,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $132,712,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 9
• Total military vehicles: 1,263
• Total naval vessels: 14
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.9075 – #88 out of 145

To back up its finances, Lithuania has 141,150 total military personnel, which is composed of 23,000 active personnel, 104,000 reserves, and 14,150 paramilitary forces. Lithuania also has a total population of 2.628 million.

26. Latvia

• External debt: $44,180,400,000
• Military defense budget: $1,138,000,000 – #84 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $4,957,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $71,154,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 7
• Total military vehicles: 1,848
• Total naval vessels: 18
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.1246 – #99 out of 145

To back up its finances, Latvia has 65,750 total military personnel, which is composed of 17,250 active personnel, 36,000 reserves, and 12,500 paramilitary forces. Latvia also has a total population of 1.801 million.

25. Croatia

• External debt: $55,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $1,176,000,000 – #83 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $3,176,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $159,305,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 67
• Total military vehicles: 2,848
• Total naval vessels: 30
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.5074 – #75 out of 145

To back up its finances, Croatia has 36,425 total military personnel, which is composed of 14,325 active personnel, 20,100 reserves, and 2,000 paramilitary forces. Croatia also has a total population of 4.150 million.

24. Slovenia

• External debt: $55,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $886,860,000 – #91 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $2,370,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $102,036,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 39
• Total military vehicles: 1,428
• Total naval vessels: 2
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.1016 – #96 out of 145

To back up its finances, Slovenia has 38,300 total military personnel, which is composed of 7,300 active personnel, 26,000 reserves, and 5,000 paramilitary forces. Slovenia also has a total population of 2.098 million.

23. Slovakia

• External debt: $127,600,000,000
• Military defense budget: $2,656,000,000 – #64 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $11,288,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $213,053,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 41
• Total military vehicles: 3,074
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.3978 – #71 out of 145

To back up its finances, Slovakia has 19,500 total military personnel all of which is composed of active personnel with no reserves or paramilitary forces to speak of. Slovakia also has a total population of 5.564 million.

22. Ukraine

• External debt: $132,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $53,700,000,000 – #10 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $40,510,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $559,981,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 324
• Total military vehicles: 18,920
• Total naval vessels: 89
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.3755 – #21 out of 145

To back up its finances, Ukraine has 2,200,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 900,000 active personnel, 1,200,000 reserves, and 100,000 paramilitary forces. Ukraine also has a total population of 35.66 million.

21. Romania

• External debt: $132,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $9,700,000,000 – #33 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $73,000,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $772,107,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 140
• Total military vehicles: 10,774
• Total naval vessels: 20
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.8984 – #51 out of 145

To back up its finances, Romania has 151,300 total military personnel, which is composed of 81,300 active personnel, 55,000 reserves, and 15,000 paramilitary forces. Romania also has a total population of 18.15 million.

20. Hungary

• External debt: $137,500,000,000
• Military defense budget: $4,576,000,000 – #53 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $45,719,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $388,906,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 69
• Total military vehicles: 7,797
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.0259 – #55 out of 145

To back up its finances, Hungary has 76,600 total military personnel, which is composed of 41,600 active personnel, 20,000 reserves, and 15,000 paramilitary forces. Hungary also has a total population of 9.856 million.

19. Czechia

• External debt: $211,200,000,000
• Military defense budget: $6,750,000,000 – #43 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $148,379,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $519,007,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 99
• Total military vehicles: 6,340
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.9994 – #53 out of 145

To back up its finances, Czechia has 32,200 total military personnel, which is composed of 28,000 active personnel and 4,200 reserves. Czechia also has a total population of 10.84 million.

18. Poland

• External debt: $386,947,000,000
• Military defense budget: $48,700,000,000 – #12 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $193,783,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $1,616,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 479
• Total military vehicles: 23,138
• Total naval vessels: 62
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.3776 – #22 out of 145

To back up its finances, Poland has 602,100 total military personnel, which is composed of 202,100 active personnel, 350,000 reserves, and 50,000 paramilitary forces. Poland also has a total population of 38.75 million.

17. Portugal

• External debt: $399,395,000,000
• Military defense budget: $4,627,000,000 – #52 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $53,710,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $529,901,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 115
• Total military vehicles: 10,828
• Total naval vessels: 194
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.6856 – #39 out of 145

To back up its finances, Portugal has 260,400 total military personnel, which is composed of 24,000 active personnel, 211,700 reserves, and 24,700 paramilitary forces. Portugal also has a total population of 10.64 million.

16. Greece

• External debt: $550,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $6,500,000,000 – #44 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $13,608,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $375,780,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 558
• Total military vehicles: 61,888
• Total naval vessels: 192
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.5337 – #30 out of 145

To back up its finances, Greece has 419,050 total military personnel, which is composed of 142,700 active personnel, 221,350 reserves, and 55,000 paramilitary forces. Greece also has a total population of 10.46 million.

15. Denmark

• External debt: $555,500,000,000
• Military defense budget: $7,225,466,250 – #40 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $109,371,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $428,385,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 117
• Total military vehicles: 3,856
• Total naval vessels: 50
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.8109 – #45 out of 145

To back up its finances, Denmark has 83,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 20,000 active personnel, 12,000 reserves, and 51,000 paramilitary forces. Denmark also has a total population of 5.973 million.

14. Austria

• External debt: $630,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $5,475,750,000 – #47 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $31,212,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $590,354,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 85
• Total military vehicles: 7,322
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.3704 – #68 out of 145

To back up its finances, Austria has 141,600 total military personnel, which is composed of 16,000 active personnel and 125,600 reserves. Austria also has a total population of 8.968 million.

13. Finland

• External debt: $660,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $6,779,661,000 – #42 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $16,929,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $321,126,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 163
• Total military vehicles: 11,704
• Total naval vessels: 264
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.8437 – #48 out of 145

To back up its finances, Finland has 947,800 total military personnel, which is composed of 24,000 active personnel, 870,000 reserves, and 53,800 paramilitary forces. Finland also has a total population of 5.626 million.

12. Norway

• External debt: $716,144,000,000
• Military defense budget: $9,710,000,000 – #32 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $80,459,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $449,528,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 97
• Total military vehicles: 6,552
• Total naval vessels: 43
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.6811 – #38 out of 145

To back up its finances, Norway has 63,250 total military personnel, which is composed of 23,250 active personnel and 40,000 paramilitary forces. Norway also has a total population of 5.510 million.

11. Sweden

• External debt: $1,002,448,700,000
• Military defense budget: $13,000,000,000 – #28 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $60,863,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $676,353,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 169
• Total military vehicles: 6,795
• Total naval vessels: 308
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.4835 – #27 out of 145

To back up its finances, Sweden has 82,300 total military personnel, which is composed of 24,400 active personnel, 32,900 reserves, and 25,000 paramilitary forces. Sweden also has a total population of 10.59 million.

10. Belgium

• External debt: $1,449,264,300,000
• Military defense budget: $10,200,000,000 – #31 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $40,813,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $751,592,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 108
• Total military vehicles: 4,606
• Total naval vessels: 9
• Military strength score and world rank: 1.2564 – #62 out of 145

To back up its finances, Belgium has 31,400 total military personnel, which is composed of 25,000 active personnel and 6,400 reserves. Belgium also has a total population of 11.98 million.

9. Switzerland

• External debt: $2,200,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $25,039,000,000 – #20 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $863,892,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $733,779,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 146
• Total military vehicles: 6,996
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.7869 – #44 out of 145

To back up its finances, Switzerland has 156,299 total military personnel, which is composed of 101,584 active personnel, 49,715 reserves, and 5,000 paramilitary forces. Switzerland also has a total population of 8.861 million.

8. Spain

• External debt: $2,572,738,300,000
• Military defense budget: $23,397,000,000 – #22 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $103,089,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $2,242,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 461
• Total military vehicles: 17,626
• Total naval vessels: 152
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.3242 – #17 out of 145

To back up its finances, Spain has 226,902 total military personnel, which is composed of 133,282 active personnel, 15,150 reserves, and 78,470 paramilitary forces. Spain also has a total population of 47.28 million.

7. Italy

• External debt: $2,750,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $30,890,000,000 – #16 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $247,396,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $3,097,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 729
• Total military vehicles: 73,480
• Total naval vessels: 196
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.2164 – #10 out of 145

To back up its finances, Italy has 289,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 165,500 active personnel, 18,500 reserves, and 105,000 paramilitary forces. Italy also has a total population of 60.96 million.

6. Ireland

• External debt: $3,300,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $1,500,000,000 – #76 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $12,905,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $608,463,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 22
• Total military vehicles: 1,712
• Total naval vessels: 8
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.1103 – #97 out of 145

To back up its finances, Ireland has 9,465 total military personnel, which is composed of 7,765 active personnel and 1,700 reserves. Ireland also has a total population of 5.233 million.

5. Luxembourg

• External debt: $4,730,000,000,000
• Military defense budget: $726,092,925 – #98 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $2,977,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $88,533,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 1
• Total military vehicles: 182
• Total naval vessels: 0
• Military strength score and world rank: 2.6415 – #117 out of 145

To back up its finances, Luxembourg has 1,000 total military personnel, all of which is composed of active personnel with no reserves or paramilitary forces to speak of. Luxembourg also has a total population of 671,254.

4. Netherlands

• External debt: $4,779,954,300,000
• Military defense budget: $27,000,000,000 – #18 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $69,830,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $1,240,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 120
• Total military vehicles: 2,755
• Total naval vessels: 64
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.6412 – #36 out of 145

To back up its finances, the Netherlands has 53,145 total military personnel, which is composed of 41,380 active personnel, 6,765 reserves, and 5,000 paramilitary forces. The Netherlands also has a total population of 17.77 million.

3. Germany

• External debt: $6,238,609,300,000
• Military defense budget: $50,000,000,000 – #11 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $322,700,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $5,230,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 584
• Total military vehicles: 83,260
• Total naval vessels: 61
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.2601 – #14 out of 145

To back up its finances, Germany has 215,600 total military personnel, which is composed of 181,600 active personnel and 34,000 reserves. Germany also has a total population of 84.12 million.

2. France

• External debt: $6,992,104,900,000
• Military defense budget: $55,000,000,000 – #9 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $240,792,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $3,764,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 976
• Total military vehicles: 110,932
• Total naval vessels: 129
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.1878 – #8 out of 145

To back up its finances, France has 376,000 total military personnel, which is composed of 200,000 active personnel, 26,000 reserves, and 150,000 paramilitary forces. France also has a total population of 68.37 million.

1. United Kingdom

• External debt: $9,593,749,000,000
• Military defense budget: $71,500,540,000 – #6 out of 145
• Foreign exchange and gold reserves: $177,915,000,000
• Purchasing power parity: $3,700,000,000,000
• Total military aircraft: 631
• Total military vehicles: 38,200
• Total naval vessels: 109
• Military strength score and world rank: 0.1785 – #6 out of 145

To back up its finances, the United Kingdom has 1,108,860 total military personnel, which is composed of 184,860 active personnel and 924,000 reserves. The United Kingdom also has a total population of 68.46 million.

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