10. Slovenia
Republic of Slovenia, a sovereign state located in southern Central Europe at a crossroads of important European cultural and trade routes. With a population of 2.07 million and capital as Ljubljana. Slovenia made it to most lists of peaceful country due to low crime, robbery reports.
The country, marked by a significant biological diversity, is one of the most water-rich in Europe, with a dense river network, a rich aquifer system, and significant karst underground watercourses. Over half of the territory is covered by forest. The human settlement of Slovenia is dispersed and uneven.
9. Sweden
Scandinavian Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund, a strait at the Swedish-Danish border. Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the third-largest country in the European Union and the fifth largest country in Europe by area. Sweden has a total population of 10.2 million of which 2.4 million has a foreign background.
In 2014, Sweden celebrates 200 years of peace, on August 15th, 1814, Sweden entered a new era of peace. The last battle took its final breath on August 14th after the signing of the Convention of Moss, ending a brief war with Norway sparked by the nation declaring its independence. The war would be Sweden’s last. “Sweden as a nation has not participated in war for 200 years,” Peter Wallensteen, senior professor of peace and conflict research at Uppsala University, told The Local.
8. Ireland
An island in the North Atlantic. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel, the Irish Sea, and St George’s Channel. Ireland is the second-largest island of the British Isles, the third-largest in Europe, and the twentieth-largest on Earth.
Politically, Ireland is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially named Ireland), which covers five-sixths of the island, and Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom. In 2011, the population of Ireland was about 6.6 million, ranking it the second-most populous island in Europe after Great Britain. Just under 4.8 million live in the Republic of Ireland and just over 1.8 million live in Northern Ireland.
7. Switzerland
Swiss Confederation, is a country situated in western, central and southern Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, and the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities. The sovereign state is a federal republic bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura. While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately 8.5 million people is concentrated mostly on the plateau, where the largest cities are to be found: among them are the two global cities and economic centres Zürich and Geneva.
In 2016, The Local reported Switzerland as one of only ten ‘truly peaceful’ countries. Switzerland belongs to a select group including Japan, Panama, Vietnam, Chile, Costa Rica, Qatar, Uruguay, Mauritius and Botswana in being free of internal and external conflicts, according to the Global Peace Index 2016.
The study produced by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) think tank also lists Switzerland – which has compulsory military service – as the seventh most peaceful country in the world.
It is one of just eleven countries in the world with a ‘very high’ peace rating. At the top of the rankings in the IEP’s tenth global peace report were Iceland, Denmark and Austria. Syria was the least peaceful country in the world for the second year in a row, below both Iraq and South Sudan.
6. Czech Republic
The Czech Republic also known by its short-form name, Czechia, Czech, is a landlocked country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east and Poland to the northeast. The Czech Republic covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres (30,450 sq mi) with a mostly temperate continental climate and oceanic climate. It is a unitary parliamentary republic, with 10.6 million inhabitants; its capital and largest city is Prague, with 1.3 million residents.
Global Peace Index: Czech Republic is the 7th most peaceful country; The Czech Republic has held its place as one of the safest and most peaceful countries in the world, ranking seventh on a list of countries with the highest levels of peace.
According to the report published on June 6, 2018, global peace levels have experienced a deterioration due to conflicts and crises that have broken out over the past decade and have yet to be resolved. The unresolved conflicts are causing further deterioration in global peace levels year by year. In particular, the tensions and conflicts in the Middle East are causing a considerable fall in the global level of peace, which is also affecting the neighbouring continent of Europe.
However, in these days of conflict and turmoil, the Czech Republic remains one of the most peaceful countries in the world. This was the fourth consecutive year to see a deterioration in the level of world peace. Last year, world peace as measured by the GPI deteriorated a further 0.27 percent. Ninety-two countries experienced a deterioration last year, according to a June 6 article on ReliefWeb, an information source on global humanitarian crises and disasters.
5. Denmark
A Nordic country and the southernmost of the Scandinavian nations. Denmark lies southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and is bordered to the south by Germany. The Kingdom of Denmark also comprises two autonomous constituent countries in the North Atlantic Ocean: the Faroe Islands and Greenland. Denmark proper consists of a peninsula, Jutland, and an archipelago of 443 named islands, with the largest being Zealand, Funen and the North Jutlandic Island. The islands are characterised by flat, arable land and sandy coasts, low elevation and a temperate climate.
2014 Global Peace Index (GPI) ranks Denmark as the world’s second most peaceful country, with Iceland in first place. Denmark has never featured lower than in sixth place on the list, which has been published since 2007, and it has held the number two spot for the last three years – this year ahead of New Zealand, Austria and Switzerland.
Denmark scores very low – meaning well – on the index’s 22 indicators of peace, including the level of violent crime and likelihood of violent demonstrations, political stability, freedom of the press, hostility to foreigners and respect for human rights.
4. Austria
The Republic of Austria is in Central Europe, and shares border with Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Liechtenstein, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Switzerland. Austria’s official language is German. As of 1 January 2016, the population of Austria was estimated to be 8,441,461 people. It is the fourth most peaceful country in the world on our list. Austria is not involved in any external as well as internal conflicts. They have maintained peace since the World War II and break up of Austro-Hungarian Empire. Austria has beautiful alps, rich culture and business friendly people.
Most people understand the absence of violence as an indicator of peace. This definition also allows for the measuring of peacefulness within, as well as between, nations. The GPI ranks independent countries by their ‘absence of violence’ using metrics that combine both internal and external factors.
3. New Zealand
New Zealand is a sovereign island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The country geographically comprises two main landmasses—the North Island, and the South Island and around 600 smaller islands. New Zealand is situated some 1,500 kilometres east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1,000 kilometres south of the Pacific island areas of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga. Because of its remoteness, it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans. The country’s varied topography and its sharp mountain peaks, such as the Southern Alps, owe much to the tectonic uplift of land and volcanic eruptions. New Zealand’s capital city is Wellington, while its most populous city is Auckland.
According to FinGlobal;
- New Zealanders are generally open-minded and believe that people should be free to live the lifestyle they choose. Laws are in place to prevent people from abusing anyone’s freedom of expression and speech.
- New Zealand has a reliable and trustworthy police force, which you can turn to. Police don’t harass people and have strict rules they have to adhere to when they act. They cannot act arbitrarily and as a rule don’t carry personal firearms.
- Due to its safe and secure environment, people living in New Zeeland are free to enjoy everything New Zealand has to offer. Residents can walk, cycle, catch transport and enjoy New Zealand’s open spaces without any fear.
- You can expect to pay the advertised price for any goods or services you purchase and you can also expect officials and those in authority to do what they are supposed to do without requiring any extra cash or ‘favours’.
- With a low-inflation environment and a monetary policy managed by the Reserve Bank who is responsible for maintaining price stability. New Zealand has a long-standing, flexible exchange rate and there are no exchange controls or restrictions on bringing in or repatriating funds.
2. Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, a country located mostly on the Iberian Peninsula in southwestern Europe. It is the westernmost sovereign state of mainland Europe. It is bordered to the west and south by the Atlantic Ocean and to the north and east by Spain. Its territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores and Madeira, both autonomous regions with their own regional governments.
The Global Peace Index 2018, has again found that Portugal is one of the most peaceful countries in the world. Portugal continues to be among the most peaceful countries in the world. The index also revealed that Iceland remains the most peaceful, a position it has held since 2008. Portugal has once again been placed among the top nations.
Behind Iceland, come New Zealand, Austria, Portugal and Denmark as the top five most peaceful countries in the world. The twelfth edition of the Global Peace Index has this year ranked 163 independent states and territories according to their level of peacefulness.
1. Iceland
Iceland, a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic, with a population of 348,580 and an area of 103,000 km2, making it the most sparsely populated country in Europe. The capital and largest city is Reykjavík, with Reykjavík and the surrounding areas in the southwest of the country being home to over two-thirds of the population. Iceland is volcanically and geologically active. The interior consists of a plateau characterised by sand and lava fields, mountains, and glaciers, and many glacial rivers flow to the sea through the lowlands.
According to CenterHotels;
- 97% of Icelanders describe themselves as middle class so a class system is barely existent which reduces jealousy and crimes associated with poverty. Children have equal opportunities for education and go to the same schools.
- Iceland is also nr. 1 in gender equality and was the first country in the world to elect a female president in 1980, Vigdís Fimbogadóttir.
- The LGBT community is also respected and the first openly gay prime minister, Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir, was democratically elected in 2009.
- Iceland has only waged one war, ‘Þorskastríðið’ or the The Cod War and it was barely a war but political disputes between the governments of Iceland and the UK over fishing grounds. The only weapons Icelanders used in the war were scissors (to cut the fishing nets of the enemy). Iceland won!
- The only officers permitted to carry firearms are on a special force called the Viking Squad, and they are seldom called out. One man has been shot by the police, EVER.
- In spite of high rate of civilian gun ownership, Iceland still has one of the lowest crime rates in the world with a murder rate of 0-1,5 per year, none that involve a firearm.