Ukraine, Afghanistan and Yemen have been named among the countries which this year faced the most extreme security risks in a new global report.
International SOS, a health and security services firm, has released a global map grading countries on the levels of security and health risks posed in each nation.
Syria, Iraq and the Gaza Strip were listed among the areas of extreme risk.
The UAE was said to have a low risk rating when it came to health and security issues, the map index showed.
“The security risk rating evaluates the threat posed to employees by political violence (including terrorism, insurgency, politically motivated unrest and war), social unrest (including sectarian, communal and ethnic violence) as well as violent and petty crime,” read a statement on the International SOS website.
“Other factors, such as the robustness of the transport infrastructure, the state of industrial relations, the effectiveness of the security and emergency services and the country’s susceptibility to natural disasters are also considered where they are of sufficient magnitude to impact the overall risk environment for employees.”
An extreme risk rating was given to nations and regions where government control and law and order was deemed to be minimal or non-existent across large areas.
Other factors included a “serious threat of violent attacks by armed groups targeting travellers and international assignees”.
Large parts of a country being inaccessible to foreigners was also a major part of determining a nation’s ranking on the map.
Countries in the extreme risk bracket included Libya, Mali, South Sudan and Somalia.
Ukraine conflict a major cause for concern
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Smoke rises on the outskirts of the city during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters -
Workers surround the Monument to the Heroes of the Heavenly Hundred with sandbags against damage from shelling in Mykolaiv. EPA -
Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomes Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev for talks before a meeting between the Russian president and the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in the Black Sea resort city of Sochi, Russia. AFP -
People take water from a water pump in Kyiv. EPA -
A woman walks past a damaged building in the town of Nova Kakhovka. Reuters -
A woman outside her home, which was destroyed during battles at the start of the conflict, in Yahidne, Chernihiv. Getty Images -
People shelter inside a subway station during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv. Reuters -
Firefighters at the site of a drone attack in Kyiv, Ukraine. AP -
A woman walks past the site of a Russian missile strike in the southern Ukrainian city of Mykolaiv. Reuters -
Rescuer workers at a building destroyed in an attack in Mykolaiv. Reuters -
Parts of a drone lie on a street in Kyiv. Reuters -
A drone flies over the Ukrainian capital during an attack. AFP -
Ukrainian servicemen tow a captured Russian armoured vehicle in Rudneve village, Kharkiv. EPA -
A partially destroyed residential building in Saltivka, in Kharkiv. AP -
Ukrainian servicemen fire a captured Russian howitzer on a front line near Kupyansk city, Kharkiv. EPA -
Ukrainian servicemen near the recently retaken town of Lyman in Donetsk region. AFP -
An officer from a Ukrainian national police emergency demining team prepares to detonate collected anti-tank mines and explosives near Lyman, in the Donetsk region. AFP -
A boy playing on a destroyed Russian tank on display in Kyiv. AFP -
A young couple hiding underground during an air alert in Zaporizhzhia. AFP -
Ukrainian firefighters looking for survivors after a strike in Zaporizhzhia. AFP -
Workers fix a banner reading 'Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson - Russia!' to the State Historical Museum near Red Square in Moscow. AFP -
Residents try to cross a destroyed bridge in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine. AFP -
Alyona Kishinskaya helps to clean up a shop as it prepares to reopen in Balakiya, Ukraine, after a six-month Russian occupation. Getty Images -
Alla, 12, has a swinging time in Balakiya, Ukraine, as life goes on despite the war. Getty Images -
Ukrainian flags in the town square in Balakiya. Getty Images -
A destroyed Russian command centre in Izium, Ukraine. Getty Images -
In what may be a final farewell, young Russian recruits - escorted by their wives - walk to a train station in Volgograd before being sent to war in Ukraine. AP -
Russian recruits board the train to Ukraine in Volgograd. AP -
Ukrainian soliders drive a tank at the recently retaken eastern side of the Oskil River in Kharkiv region, Ukraine. AFP -
Volunteers pass boxes of food aid on a destroyed bridge over the Oskil River. AFP -
Ukrainian soliders rest on an armoured personnel carrier. AFP -
A sign warns of landmines in Izyum, eastern Ukraine. AFP -
This crater was left after a missile strike in the Donetsk region of Ukraine. AFP
Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia in late February, was also among the most dangerous places in the world on the map index.
The situation there will continue to be a major issue for global peace and security, said an International SOS risk report released this month.
“The Russia/Ukraine conflict was the defining security issue of 2022, highlighting how geopolitics and the threat of interstate conflict are back on the corporate risk agenda,” read the report.
“The conflict will certainly still have an impact in 2023, so it is beneficial for organisations to learn how to effectively handle the shifting global risk environment.
“Geopolitical volatility will also spread beyond Russia/Ukraine in the next 12 months, as increasing fissures between Russia and the West will impact other conflicts and exacerbate longstanding geopolitical tensions.”
Tensions between the US and China were also tipped to be in major focus next year.
Another trend emerging was a state of “perma-crisis”, in which many organisations found themselves due to a combination of the Covid-19 pandemic and rising geopolitical tension.
“Many crisis management teams are learning to deal with a state of ‘perma-crisis’,” read the report.
“It will be beneficial for organisations in 2023 to provide the correct level of training, investment and support for these teams, as experts have drawn attention to significantly high levels of crisis management fatigue.
“Managing crisis management fatigue is key in moving from ‘perma-crisis’ to crisis resilience and organisations who effectively embedded learnings from the last two years will emerge with more robust capabilities to manage challenges.”
The ranking of low risk is awarded to nations where violent crime rates are low. Racial, sectarian or political violence or civil unrest is also uncommon in these regions.
If terrorism is a threat in countries with low security risk ratings it is said groups have limited operational capabilities, and acts of terrorism are rare.
This is down to security and emergency services being effective within a sound infrastructure, according to the report, which also said protest action or transport disruptions were rare in these areas.
