The Global Peace Index reflects a worsening in nearly one hundred countries, with the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza as the main drivers of the decline
June 11 (EUROPA PRESS) –
The peace situation in the world is currently experiencing its most fragile state since the Second World War, according to the Global Peace Index (GPI), which shows a worsening of the situation in nearly a hundred countries during the last year. , with the conflicts in the Gaza Strip and Ukraine as the main drivers of this drop in 2023, when 162,000 deaths were recorded due to the war.
The study reveals that the world is less peaceful for the twelfth time in the last 16 years, with peace levels worsening for the fifth consecutive year, and concludes that many of the conditions that precede major conflicts are greater than they have been. since the end of World War II.
Thus, there are currently 56 active conflicts, the highest number since 1945, while they increasingly have an international component, with up to 92 countries involved in conflicts beyond their borders and a growing number of minor conflicts, which increases the likelihood of large-scale conflicts in the future.
The figure of 162,000 deaths in conflict is the second highest in the last 30 years – with Ukraine and Gaza being the focus of three quarters of the fatalities. During the first four months of 2024, 47,000 deaths have been recorded, so if the trend continued throughout the year, it would be the highest number since the genocide in Rwanda in 1994.
Conflicts have caused more than 95 million people to be displaced within their countries or have sought refuge abroad, with 16 countries with more than five percent of their population displaced. Half of the refugees in mid-2023 were from Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The situation has led to the largest annual increase in the degree of annual militarization since the creation of the IPG, with 108 countries increasingly militarized, with a global economic impact of violence of 17.5 trillion euros, 13.5 percent of world GDP.
“Over the last decade, peace levels have declined in nine out of ten years,” said Steve Killelea, founder and CEO of the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP). “We are witnessing a record number of conflicts, increased militarization and greater international strategic competition,” he added.
“Conflicts negatively affect the global economy, and business risk derived from conflicts has never been higher, aggravating current global economic vulnerabilities,” he explained, before emphasizing that “it is imperative that governments and companies around the world to intensify their efforts to resolve the many minor conflicts before they become major crises.”
Thus, Killelea has argued that “80 years have passed since the end of the Second World War, and the current crises urgently require world leaders to commit to investing in the resolution of these conflicts.” Compared to 2008, the 25 most peaceful countries are one percent more peaceful in 2024, while the 25 least peaceful countries are 7.5 percent less peaceful.
EUROPE, THE MOST PEACEFUL REGION
The index shows that Europe continues to be the most peaceful region, with seven of the ten best ranked countries. The list is headed by Iceland, which has led the ranking since 2008, followed by Ireland, Austria, New Zealand and Singapore and with Spain in 23rd place, seven places higher than last year.
Despite this, it has suffered an annual deterioration in peace of 0.24 percent, since of the 36 countries in the region, thirteen improved and 23 worsened their level of peace, with militarization and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine as the main cause of this decline. Thus, the invasion of Ukraine has made the country the fifth least peaceful in the world, only surpassed by Yemen, Sudan, South Sudan and Afghanistan. Furthermore, Russia has become the seventh least peaceful country in the world.
For this reason, the IEP has stated that the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza “are an example of ‘forever war’, where prolonged violence becomes seemingly endless, without clear resolutions, exacerbated by external military support, asymmetric warfare and rivalries geopolitics”, with an impact also on the countries of the region, which have reevaluated their military spending and general preparation for combat.
The report also highlights that these two conflicts “illustrate the devastating human cost and complexity of modern war” and has elaborated that “geopolitical shifts further complicate the management of global conflicts”, in a “transition” from a unipolar world. to a multipolar one that “has intensified competition and protracted conflicts.”
FURTHER DETERIORATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST
Thus, the Middle East region repeats as the least peaceful region in the world, with Palestine registering the fourth largest deterioration in peace in 2024 with a drop of nine positions and Israel at a historic low and a “significant” impact on the media. communication, given that “articles in Israeli media with negative sentiment towards Palestinians increased by 85 percent in early 2024, up from 30 percent in 1999.”
This area of the world is also in “a delicate balance of forces”, with active conflicts in Syria, Lebanon, Iran and Yemen and “a high risk of open war.” In contrast, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) experienced the greatest improvement in peace in the Middle East and North Africa, rising 31 places to 53rd position.
For its part, sub-Saharan Africa shows a drop in levels of peace, ranking as the second least peaceful region, due to multiple security crises, especially in the Sahel. The greatest improvement has been made by Ethiopia, while Mauritius is the most peaceful country in this area of the world for the 17th consecutive year.
FALL IN NORTH AMERICA
However, the greatest deterioration in peace has occurred in North America, with significant declines in the United States and Canada due to increases in violent crime and perceptions of criminality, yet it continues to rank as the third most vulnerable region. Pacific in the world, behind Europe and the Asia-Pacific. The United States has recorded the biggest drop in peace in the region, sinking to 132nd place with a deterioration in all three fields studied.
For its part, South America experienced the second largest drop in peace in the world, becoming the fifth most peaceful region, with Argentina as the only representative among the first 50 countries and an improvement in the political instability indicator after the victory of Javier Milei in the elections.
Colombia continues to appear as the least peaceful country in the region for the fourth consecutive year due in part to the increase in attacks by FARC dissidents, although the greatest deterioration in the region – and the second worldwide – It was starred by Ecuador. Ecuador’s fall has been marked by the “substantial” increase in violence related to drug trafficking and gangs, while Peru registered the greatest improvement in peace in the region, ranking among the first one hundred countries for the first time since 2020.
Finally, the Central America and Caribbean region also recorded a slight deterioration in indicators, with Costa Rica as the safest country and El Salvador as the country with the greatest improvement, while Haiti recorded the greatest deterioration — fifth worldwide — and becomes for the first time the least peaceful country in the region.
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