2025 Sets Record for Global Conflict, Data Shows

65 conflicts in 2025, the most since UCDP began in 1946; eight were interstate wars, double 2024. Thirteen met the war threshold (>=1,000 battlefield deaths). Battle-related deaths reached about 245,000, the third deadliest year after 1994 and 2021.

NPR

State wars involved 35 nations; Africa hosted 29 of the 65 conflicts. Eight interstate wars spanned India-Pakistan, Afghanistan-Pakistan, Cambodia-Thailand, Russia-Ukraine and Israeli fronts (Gaza, Syria, Lebanon, Iran, Houthis). Non-state fights fell to 75. One-sided violence rose fivefold to 76,500 deaths, up from 14,200. Sudan’s RSF killed 60,000 civilians, mainly in El Fasher.

NPR

The surge in interstate wars and civilian targeting challenges Geneva Conventions, strains humanitarian aid, and threatens supply chains, especially in Africa, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.

Primaries Unfold Across Four States as Global Conflicts Hit Highest Level Since WWII

UCDP analyst Shawn Davies says there is a “clear increase in conflicts between states” and a “changing security order.” Therése Pettersson warns the surge “is not only a story of more conflicts, but also of extremely high levels of lethal violence,” citing Sudan. PRIO’s Siri Aas Rustad calls the trend “shocking” and notes “the world doesn’t get any break.” UCDP report adds the pattern predates U.S. administration and lacks a single-policy cause.

NewsNation

Some analysts link the surge to United States’ 2025 National Security Strategy, while JordanNews cites Rustad tying President Donald Trump’s return to “more attacks and violence” and a weakened UN Security Council. UCDP records 244,600 battle deaths versus PRIO’s 245,000, and its analysts stress no direct causal link to U.S. policy, contrasting with commentary that attributes the trend to recent U.S. strategy.

NPR

• “We are seeing a clear increase in conflicts between states. For a long time, interstate wars were relatively rare, but developments in recent years point to growing international tensions and a changing global security order,” — Shawn Davies, senior analyst, UCDP

NPR

• “It is not only a story of more conflicts, but also of extremely high levels of lethal violence. Most notably, we see a dramatic increase in violence directed against civilians, particularly in Sudan,” — Therése Pettersson, senior analyst and project manager, UCDP

NPR

• “Usually I'm able to sort of squeeze something positive out of it, but this year it's shocking, the numbers,” — Siri Aas Rustad, researcher, PRIO

DW News

• “ Sponsor Message "What the data shows is that interstate conflicts have increased sharply over the past decade and reached their highest level since World War II.” — Co-author Petterssen, UCDP

NPR

Researchers expect the upward trend to continue into 2026 and urge annual UCDP updates, emphasizing one-sided violence and the expanding role of non-state actors.

NewsNation