The Military Balance is the annual assessment of the military capabilities and defence economics of 170 countries world-wide, produced annually by the IISS since 1959.  The Military Balance 2009 contains region-by-region analysis of the major military and economic developments affecting defence and security policies and the trade in weapons and other military equipment.  It is an essential resource for those involved in security policymaking, analysis and research. 

Comprehensive tables detail major military training activities, UN and non-UN deployments, and give data on key equipment holdings and defence economics, as well as defence expenditure trends over a ten-year period.  The Military Balance 2009 also contains essays on defence industries in the Asia-Pacific region and UN peacekeeping.  There is a further short essay noting trends in non-state activity, which complements the table of selected nonstate groups.  The Military Balance 2009 also includes an updated Chart of Conflict, a wallchart showing current conflicts around the world, with selected supporting tables.

"The Military Balance is the unique and vital resource on which informed public debate of the world's armed forces is founded. Up-to-date figures and information on defence budgets, procurement totals, equipment holdings, and military deployments are presented clearly and succinctly. In the area of defense information, where nationally produced fictions often masquerade as facts, The Military Balance is the internationally recognized source of record."
William S. Cohen, former U.S. Secretary of Defense

Key features of The Military Balance include:

• Region-by-region analysis: major military issues affecting each region; developments in defence economics, procurements and inventories.
• Comprehensive tables: key data on military equipment and defence economics, such as selected tables of air capability and comparisons of international defence expenditure and military manpower.
• Features: specialist essays focusing on defence industries in Asia and United Nations peacekeeping.
• Wallchart: comprehensive world map showing armed conflicts and trends in conflict, with explanatory tables.

The Military Balance provides the high-quality, reliable, information needed to keep abreast of the complexities of the current international security environment.