Iceland is the world’s second most peaceful nation after New Zealand, according to this year’s Global Peace Index; but the index also concludes that the global financial crisis has made the world a less peaceful place.

The annual list puts Iceland two places higher than last year and the country has now leapfrogged Japan, which is in third place. Iceland came out number one in spring 2008, however. But that was before the ‘pots and pans revolution’ which included occasional violent clashes and toppled the government.

The USA is the 85th most peaceful nation, according to the ranking, and comes out below Libya and Nicaragua, among others. At the bottom of the list is Iraq in 149th place and Somalia, Afghanistan and Sudan are also near the bottom, RUV reports.

The Global Peace Index is compiled by the Institute for Economics and Peacem, which uses data from the research and predictions department at The Economist.

The figures are a compound score based on a variety of factors including national crime rate, security spending, relations with neighbouring countries, prison population and human rights record.

It is the report’s conclusion that the world is less peaceful now than last year. The development is driven by economic woes which have seen crime rates increase, violent protests in capital cities and more people are becoming victim to violent acts.

Only Africa and the Middle East are considered more peaceful now than when the list was first compiled in 2007, although the figures vary wildly country-by-country. Some of the major potential hotspots are Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece and Spain – all European countries struggling with difficult economic circumstances and with increasing public unrest.

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