South Korea Ranks 2nd in World Passport Power... "Stronger Than US"

South Korea has maintained its 2nd place ranking on the Henry Passport Index, which measures the strength of passports worldwide, according to data released on July 21 (local time).

According to the 20th-anniversary report of the Henry Passport Index released by global citizenship and residence advisory firm Henley & Partners that day, South Korea secured the 2nd spot alongside Singapore, with its citizens able to enter 188 countries without a visa or with a visa-on-arrival, trailing only Singapore at 192 countries.

Japan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) also tied with South Korea for 2nd place.

Compared to 2006 when the index was first developed, South Korea has added 73 destinations, Japan 60, and the UAE 153.

The United States ranked 10th with access to 180 countries.

This marks a decline for the U.S., which held the top spot in 2006.

Considering that 36 countries rank ahead of the U.S. (including ties), it effectively stands at 37th.

Unlike other leading Western developed nations in the upper ranks, the U.S. drop was attributed to factors such as the inability of U.S. passport holders to enter China without a visa.

CNN noted, "The index, which tracks the global travel freedom provided by passports based on the number of destinations passport holders can visit without a visa or with a visa-on-arrival, shows that the U.S. passport is no longer among the most powerful."

At the bottom of the index is Afghanistan with access to 22 countries.

North Korea ranked 97th with 35 countries, remaining in the lowest tier alongside Nepal, Somalia, Yemen, Pakistan, Iraq, and Syria.

When compared with the Global Peace Index—which has also been published for 20 years by the Institute for Economics & Peace by analyzing inter-state conflicts—the two indices showed a positive correlation.

However, the U.S., which is at war with Iran, maintains a relatively high passport ranking at 10th despite placing 134th on the Global Peace Index. Similarly, Israel ranks 149th in peace but 18th in passport strength.

The report explained, "At a time when tensions with Iran and instability across the Middle East are once again making major headlines, their high mobility shows that passport power is not determined by peace levels alone."

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