ABU DHABI // The UAE is the 40th most peaceful country in the world, and the third most peaceful in the Gulf region, according to a survey of 144 nations released yesterday.
New Zealand and Denmark topped the rankings, released by the Institute for Economics and Peace, a research centre that looks at the relationship between economics and peace. Afghanistan and Iraq were named the least peaceful.
"Many people's perception of the Middle East is that it is a violent place, but the presence of Qatar, Oman and the UAE towards the top of the table shows otherwise," said Steve Killelea, the Australian businessman behind the index, which is collated and calculated by the Economist Intelligence Unit and endorsed by the World Bank and the OECD.
A broadly peaceful world was necessary for humanity to face up to global challenges such as climate change, Mr Killelea said.
"Unless the world is peaceful there will not be the cohesion needed to solve these problems," he said.
In the index, peace is defined as an absence of violence, with more emphasis on violence that occurs within countries, such as murder, than wars between nation states, Mr Killelea said.
Qatar, tied for 16th place, was the most peaceful country in the Middle East because of its high per capita income, low homicide rate, low jail population and low military spending, Mr Killelea said. Oman, in 21st place, was seen as politically less stable than Qatar, he said.
The UAE tied with Bhutan to rank just below Vietnam and one place ahead of Kuwait. Its ranking has been consistent in the three years of the survey; it was 42nd out of 140 nations last year and 38th out of 121 in 2007.
The UAE was ranked lower than Qatar and Oman because it had more people employed in its internal security forces, a higher proportion of people in jail and spent more on its armed forces, Mr Killelea said.
In April, a study by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) found that the UAE was the world's third-biggest arms importer between 2004 and 2008, after China and India.
This was explained by General Khaled Abdullah al Bu-Ainnain, a former UAE Air Force chief who is currently president of the Dubai-based Institute for Near East and Gulf Military Analysis, who said the UAE was simply seeking to protect itself rather than project an aggressive stance. He added that the country's armed forces had just finished a process of modernisation.
Dr Mustafa Alami, security analyst at the Gulf Research Centre in Dubai, said: "As an indicator, such spending is meaningless. The UAE is as stable as Qatar, but Qatar spends less on defence because it has a US military command centre on its land."
But Mr Killelea said even the perception of a threat affected a country's peacefulness.
"We are not making moral judgments," he said. "Most of us want to live in a peaceful society. If you have a strong military it shows either that you want to be aggressive or that you have a perception of a threat against you."
The rankings also showed a strong correlation between per capita income and peace, Mr Killelea said. The top 10 countries were all highly developed nations, including the whole of Scandinavia.
A team of US economists has calculated that violence costs the global economy US$7.2 trillion (Dh26.4 trillion) every year. By contrast, business related to violence, such as the arms trade, is worth about $3.1 trillion, according to figures from SIPRI and the CIA World Factbook.
"Peaceful conditions allow business to flourish," Mr Killelea said. "In the past, nations invaded other countries and took the assets to better lifestyles at home. But the proliferation of small arms has made war economically unviable. Now business is getting more and more interested in peace."
Prosperity, however, did not significantly help the US in the rankings. America was placed 83rd because of the availability of weapons and a murder rate of about 20,000 people each year, although it was up from 97th last year.
Mr Killelea, who found commercial success in IT, became interested in peace after visiting war zones in Africa.
"What do we really know about peace?" he asked. "We understand peace very badly. Overall, the world is becoming more peaceful, but we need peace to deal with issues surrounding climate change, sustainability, water, biodiversity and overpopulation. So it's a mixed picture."
tspender@thenational.ae
How much sugar is in chocolate Easter eggs?
- The 169g Crunchie egg has 15.9g of sugar per 25g serving, working out at around 107g of sugar per egg
- The 190g Maltesers Teasers egg contains 58g of sugar per 100g for the egg and 19.6g of sugar in each of the two Teasers bars that come with it
- The 188g Smarties egg has 113g of sugar per egg and 22.8g in the tube of Smarties it contains
- The Milky Bar white chocolate Egg Hunt Pack contains eight eggs at 7.7g of sugar per egg
- The Cadbury Creme Egg contains 26g of sugar per 40g egg
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At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth
Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Rating: 4.5/5
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Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
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Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
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TEACHERS' PAY - WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
Pay varies significantly depending on the school, its rating and the curriculum. Here's a rough guide as of January 2021:
- top end schools tend to pay Dh16,000-17,000 a month - plus a monthly housing allowance of up to Dh6,000. These tend to be British curriculum schools rated 'outstanding' or 'very good', followed by American schools
- average salary across curriculums and skill levels is about Dh10,000, recruiters say
- it is becoming more common for schools to provide accommodation, sometimes in an apartment block with other teachers, rather than hand teachers a cash housing allowance
- some strong performing schools have cut back on salaries since the pandemic began, sometimes offering Dh16,000 including the housing allowance, which reflects the slump in rental costs, and sheer demand for jobs
- maths and science teachers are most in demand and some schools will pay up to Dh3,000 more than other teachers in recognition of their technical skills
- at the other end of the market, teachers in some Indian schools, where fees are lower and competition among applicants is intense, can be paid as low as Dh3,000 per month
- in Indian schools, it has also become common for teachers to share residential accommodation, living in a block with colleagues
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What is dialysis?
Dialysis is a way of cleaning your blood when your kidneys fail and can no longer do the job.
It gets rid of your body's wastes, extra salt and water, and helps to control your blood pressure. The main cause of kidney failure is diabetes and hypertension.
There are two kinds of dialysis — haemodialysis and peritoneal.
In haemodialysis, blood is pumped out of your body to an artificial kidney machine that filter your blood and returns it to your body by tubes.
In peritoneal dialysis, the inside lining of your own belly acts as a natural filter. Wastes are taken out by means of a cleansing fluid which is washed in and out of your belly in cycles.
It isn’t an option for everyone but if eligible, can be done at home by the patient or caregiver. This, as opposed to home haemodialysis, is covered by insurance in the UAE.
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Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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Rating: 3/5
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Biog:
Age: 34
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Favourite sport: anything extreme
Favourite person: Muhammad Ali