Canadians Celebrate As Canada Crushes The U.S. In Global Peace Rankings

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Every year, the Global Peace Index offers a complete listing and case examine of how nations evaluate relating to security, battle, and stability. The report seems to be at the whole lot from crime charges to worldwide relations, and the outcomes typically spotlight the variations between international locations world wide – even these with shut ties.

For neighbors like Canada and the USA, the rankings are eye-opening. Whereas each nations are long-standing allies, their approaches to protection, diplomacy, and home safety have led to a big hole between them within the 2025 International Peace Index. Here is the place the international locations fall on the listing, and why Canada continues to constantly outpace the USA.

Canada Outranks The U.S. On The 2025 International Peace Index

Out of 163 international locations, the USA landed close to the underside of the 2025 International Peace Index at 128th place, whereas Canada ranked a lot larger at quantity 14.

The hole comes right down to a number of key components, together with involvement in abroad conflicts, navy spending, and charges of violent crime. Whereas violent crime within the U.S. has declined in comparison with previous years, the nation’s function in conflicts overseas and its excessive protection funds stay main components decreasing its rating.

The “exterior conflicts fought” class measures a rustic’s involvement in wars or disputes exterior its borders. The U.S., together with Russia, Iran, and France, ranked among the many worst offenders. In 2024 alone, the USA was concerned in 5 separate exterior conflicts, a lot of that are nonetheless ongoing in 2025.

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Army spending additionally affected the U.S. rating, because it did for greater than 80 different international locations. A lot of the rise worldwide was linked to the continued wars in Ukraine and Israel–Palestine. According to a March 2024 press release from the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. has supplied $66.9 billion in navy assist to Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion started in 2022.

A May 2025 Congressional Research Service report additionally famous that, since October 7, 2023, the U.S. has supplied Israel with $174 billion in help and missile protection funding.

Why Canada Continues To Outperform The U.S. In Peace Rankings

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Canada’s total peacefulness rating slipped by 5.8% in comparison with 2024, with the largest declines seen in violent crime, relations with neighboring international locations, and navy spending. For instance, this yr, Canada’s U.S. boycott forced cities like Las Vegas to acknowledge the consequences of reduced tourism. However regardless of these tensions with its southern neighbor, Canada continues to be one of many world’s extra peaceable nations.

Relating to violent crime, Canada’s numbers are a lot decrease than these of the U.S. In 2024, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police reported 788 homicides nationwide, or 1.91 homicides per 100,000 folks. In distinction, the Council of Criminal Justice reported that throughout simply 29 main U.S. cities, the murder fee reached 12.9 per 100,000 that very same yr.

Army spending is one other notable distinction between the 2 international locations. The index implies that larger navy budgets are sometimes linked to reliance on drive fairly than diplomacy, which lowers a rustic’s peacefulness rating.

It states:

“The 2025 GPI finds that international peacefulness continues to say no and that most of the main components that precede main conflicts are larger than they’ve been because the finish of WWII. Extra international locations are growing their ranges of militarisation towards the backdrop of rising geopolitical tensions, growing battle, the breakup of conventional alliances and rising financial uncertainty.”

Canada allotted $29.7 billion to protection in 2024 and is anticipated to spend $37.9 billion in 2025, according to the Government of Canada website. The USA, however, spent nearly $850 billion in 2024 alone. Canada’s extra restrained spending and emphasis on diplomacy assist clarify why it constantly ranks above the U.S.

That mentioned, Canada is surprisingly not among the many prime ten most peaceable international locations.

High Ten Most Peaceable International locations On The International Peace Index:

Whereas Canada has its personal challenges, its rank on the International Peace Index stays comparatively excessive, leaving many to marvel if the U.S. can ever shut the hole.