Hungary is among the safest countries
The survey of the peaceful nature of individual countries ranked Hungary thirteenth, improving two places in its annual report a research institute called the Institute for Economics and Peace. In this year’s Global Peace Index study, our country finished ahead of countries such as Germany, Norway, Belgium and Australia.
The research institute that published the summary summarized the available data on 163 countries based on twenty-three indicator numbers. The indicators included the number of citizens who died participating in an external conflict, the number and outcome of violent demonstrations, the regulation of access to small arms, political instability or, for example, the size of the armed forces.
The biggest changes
In the aggregate, the biggest drop is related to Ukraine (153rd, down seventeen places from last year), Guinea (down 26 places to 123rd on this year’s list), and Kazakhstan.
Classifying the twenty-three indicators into larger areas, the institute compiled the largest changes in each area, both positive and negative. In the field of physical and general security, the Nordic states stood out again (Iceland came first, Norway second, and Denmark fourth), while Afghanistan, Yemen, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo performed worst in this area.
In terms of armaments – it shows how consciously a country organizes itself from a military point of view – Hungary finished behind Iceland, Slovenia and New Zealand, presumably due to the development of its forces and the improvement of its military infrastructure in recent years.
Where does Europe stand?
Interestingly, the institute saw Europe as more peaceful this year than in 2021. The reason for this is that Ukraine and Russia are located in the region called Eurasia and Russia. The study also states that the effects of the war in Ukraine are undeniable. Greece, the largest in Europe, improved its rating: it was measured in fifty-third place. Turkey is considered the least peaceful country for the fifteenth year running. It is also due to the impact of the events in Ukraine that Estonia’s ranking deteriorated the most. As a background for this, the increased risk due to the military aid shipments sent to Ukraine almost for the first time, as well as the violent demonstrations that broke out as a result of the epidemic treatment, can be mentioned. Within Europe, Hungary is listed as the ninth most peaceful country.
Cover photo: August 20 – Gripen fighter jets over the Danube in the capital (Photo: Péter Lakatos)