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🇸🇪 Sweden /Conflict & Security

Record number of inter-state conflicts in 2025, UCDP reports

From Svenska Dagbladet · () Swedish

Translated from Swedish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Documents & data Context piece
  • The number of inter-state conflicts reached a record high in 2025, marking the bloodiest year in over three decades, according to Uppsala University's Conflict Data Program (UCDP).
  • A total of 65 conflicts involving states were registered in 2025, the highest figure since records began in 1946, with eight pure inter-state conflicts also being a post-WWII high.
  • Violence against civilians increased dramatically, driven largely by the war in Sudan, with preliminary data suggesting the high death toll trend is continuing into 2026.

The world is experiencing a deeply concerning trend of escalating conflict, with 2025 marking a record year for inter-state disputes and the bloodiest period in over 30 years, according to data from Uppsala University's Conflict Data Program (UCDP).

It is a very worrying trend.

— Therese PetterssonTherese Pettersson, senior analyst and project manager at UCDP, commenting on the record number of inter-state conflicts.

Researchers registered a total of 65 conflicts involving states in 2025, the highest number since the UCDP began its record-keeping in 1946. The number of pure inter-state wars also climbed to eight, a level not seen since World War II. This includes ongoing conflicts such as those between Russia and Ukraine, Iran and Israel, and India and Pakistan.

Therese Pettersson, a senior analyst at UCDP, described the rise in inter-state conflicts as particularly alarming due to their potential for greater lethality. She noted a growing tendency to use military force across international borders, alongside a decline in diplomatic conflict resolution and mediation efforts. Pettersson also pointed to a more multipolar world, where the United States' role as a global police force has diminished, contributing to the volatile landscape.

The increase in conflicts between states is very worrying, because that type of conflict has the potential to become much deadlier.

— Therese PetterssonTherese Pettersson, senior analyst and project manager at UCDP, explaining the increased danger of inter-state conflicts.

Beyond inter-state clashes, violence against civilians surged dramatically in 2025, increasing by over 400 percent compared to the previous year. This grim statistic is primarily attributed to the war in Sudan and massacres in Darfur's El Fasher region, which alone accounted for over 60,000 civilian deaths. Preliminary data for early 2026 indicates that the high death toll and conflict rates are persisting, painting a bleak picture for global stability.

This is a completely horrific development, driven almost exclusively by the war in Sudan and the massacres that took place in El Fasher in Darfur.

— Therese PetterssonTherese Pettersson, senior analyst and project manager at UCDP, describing the increase in violence against civilians.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Svenska Dagbladet in Swedish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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