Singapore ranked 6th most peaceful country in the world: Global Peace Index

Iceland remains the most peaceful country in the world, while Afghanistan is the least peaceful.

A view of the Singapore city skyline on Sep 23, 2022. (File photo: CNA/Try Sutrisno Foo)

Singapore has been ranked as the sixth most peaceful country in the world, and is also the highest-placed Asian country, according to a report by independent non-profit think tank Institute for Economics & Peace (IEP).

Singapore has climbed up the ranks of the Global Peace Index, which was released on Wednesday (Jun 28), rising from its 10th place last year. 

Most Asia Pacific countries were in the top half of the chart. 

ICELAND REMAINS MOST PEACEFUL COUNTRY

“The Global Peace Index provides a snapshot of where we are, and it certainly indicates where trends are going or where they are coming from,” said Mr Michael Collins, executive director for the Americas at IEP. 

“What we really want to get to are the underlying factors that create and sustain peace.”

The institute relies on statistical and analytical work to “better understand the underlying attitudes, institutions and structures” that are creating and sustaining peace around the world, he told CNA938 on Wednesday. 

The index, now in its 17th edition, ranked 163 independent states and territories according to their level of peacefulness.

People in the central business district in Singapore on Mar 25, 2022. (File photo: CNA/Gaya Chandramohan)

Iceland remains the most peaceful country in the world, a position it has held since 2008. 

Other countries that made the top 10 include Denmark, Ireland, New Zealand, Austria, Portugal, Slovenia, Japan and Switzerland. 

Afghanistan is the least peaceful country in the world for the eighth consecutive year, followed by Yemen, Syria, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

According to the report, the world has become less peaceful over the last decade.

In the past year, 84 countries recorded an improvement, while 79 countries recorded a deterioration in peacefulness.

UKRAINE WAR’S IMPACT ON GLOBAL PEACE

While the ongoing war in Ukraine had a significant impact on global peace, the intensity of conflict had increased around the world even before it began.

Mr Collins said developments in places such as Ukraine, Ethiopia and Myanmar, all contributed to that increase. 

In the latest index, Ukraine and Russia respectively recorded the largest and fifth largest deteriorations in peacefulness. Both are now ranked amongst the ten least peaceful countries. 

Haiti, Mali and Israel were the other countries with the largest deteriorations. 

Olena, wife of 42 year-old soldier Andrii Bontsiun, second right, stands with other family members above her husband's grave during a funeral ceremony at Lviv cemetery, western Ukraine, on Thursday, Feb. 23, 2023. Bontsiun died in Soledar, Donetsk Oblast, on Jan. 9, 2023. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

The war in Ukraine will continue to impact the global economy, said Mr Collins.

“In terms of the long-term impact of the war, I think there's been a lot of time to sort of adapt to elements related to food security and availability of fertilisers, of grain,” he added.

“But of course, the energy question will rear its head once again as soon as winter comes on. So I think the economic impact of (the Ukraine war) is by no means over and continues to have repercussions around the world.”

The Global Peace Index uses 23 indicators from various sources, and measures the state of peace across three domains, namely the level of societal safety and security, the extent of ongoing domestic and international conflict, and the degree of militarisation. 

GROWING GAP BETWEEN MOST AND LEAST PEACEFUL COUNTRIES 

The gap between the least and most peaceful countries in the world continues to grow, said Mr Collins. 

“We see that the 25 most peaceful countries in the world, for example, have progressively become more peaceful, whereas the 25 least peaceful have significantly deteriorated.”

He pointed out that technology has also changed the dynamics of conflicts. 

Drones, for instance, have played a major role, with military and commercial drones utilised in large numbers in Ukraine, Ethiopia and Myanmar. 

“Not only do we now have countries that are sort of major exporters of drones such as Turkey, but we have drones being increasingly used in conflicts worldwide,” said Mr Collins. 

Despite the increase in the use of drones globally, they still account for a relatively small percentage of total attacks and conflict-related deaths, particularly in larger conflicts, he added. 

The need for “a systemic response” to building peace is urgent, as conflict intensifies in several regions, said the report. 

“The gap between the most and least peaceful countries continues to grow, and although many measures of militarisation have improved over the past fifteen years, the proliferation of cheaper advanced military technologies, increasing geopolitical competition, and an underlying current of political instability in many countries means that a continuing deterioration of global peacefulness seems likely.”

This article was originally published on Channel News Asia. Its inclusion on this website is solely for education purposes.