DUSHANBE, June 13, 2012, Asia-Plus – The 2012 Global Peace Index (GPI) has ranked Tajikistan 99th among 158 nations in terms of peacefulness.  Tajikistan has risen four places as compared with 2011.

Ukraine has been ranked 71st, Kazakhstan – 105th, Belarus – 109th, Uzbekistan – 110th, Armenia – 115th, Turkmenistan – 117th, Kyrgyzstan – 131st, Azerbaijan – 132nd.

Meanwhile, Russia has dropped over 6 places on the rankings – from 147th in 2011 to 153rd.

The 2012 Global Peace index has found that the world has become more peaceful for the first time since 2009, whilst Syria has dropped over 30 places on the rankings.

Iceland is once again ranked the most peaceful country in the world, followed by Denmark and New Zealand.  

Somalia is the least peaceful country at 158th position and with a score of 3.392. Afghanistan, Sudan, Iraq and the Democratic Republic of Congo make up the bottom five.

The top 5 fallers are Syria, Egypt, Tunisia, Oman and Malawi.  Syria has seen the biggest drop in margin, falling over 30 places to be placed at 147th.  The Middle East is now amongst one of the least peaceful regions in the world, with the drop in rankings for the Arab countries reflecting the turbulence and instability created by the events of the Arab Spring.

Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Bhutan, Guyana and the Philippines are the top 5 risers on the GPI 2012.

The Global Peace Index (GPI) is an attempt to measure the relative position of nations'' and regions'' peacefulness. It is the product of Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) and developed in consultation with an international panel of peace experts from peace institutes and think tanks with data collected and collated by the Economist Intelligence Unit.  The list was launched first in May 2007, then continued on May 2008, June 2, 2009, June 10, 2010, May 25, 2011 and most recently on June 12, 2012.  It is claimed to be the first study to rank countries around the world according to their peacefulness.

Now in it''s sixth year, the GPI is made up of 23 indicators and ranks 158 countries. It gages the level of safety and security in society and also looks at the extent of domestic or international conflict.

The indicators range from a nation''s level of military expenditure to its relations with neighboring countries and the level of respect for human rights.  The index has been tested against a range of potential "drivers" or determinants of peace—including levels of democracy and transparency, education and national wellbeing.

Nations considered more peaceful have lower index scores.