TIRANA, June 8 – Albania ranked as the 54th most peaceful country in the world in the tenth edition of the Global Peace Index (GPI), according to an annual report released by the Institute for Economics and Peace measuring the level of peacefulness in 163 countries.
Albania’s score slightly deteriorated from last year, when it ranked 52th in the world.
Nonetheless, Albania’s level of peacefulness has overall been on the rise. For example, it ranked 71th among 162 countries back in 2013.
In the region, Croatia, Serbia, and Montenegro had the state of peace identified as high alongside Albania, ranking 26th, 48th and 57th respectively.
Bosnia, Kosovo and Greece scored lower, ranking among nations with the state of peace set as medium.
Macedonia fared worst in the Western Balkans ranking 94th in the world.
Rising ethnic tensions there are believed to have affected Macedonia’s position in the report.
Meanwhile, Iceland retained its position as the world’s most peaceful country with Denmark and Austria completing the top three.
Europe was once again the world’s most peaceful region accounting for six of the top seven positions.
At the other end, Syria remained the least peaceful country, followed by South Sudan and Iraq.
Overall, world peace deteriorated slightly compared to the previous year, the report noted.
The index measures the state of peace according to 23 indicators divided into three main themes- the level of safety and security in society, the number of international and domestic conflicts and the degree of militarisation.
