sentences:  This period has exhibited more than a quarter of a century of even greater stability and peacefulness, and has also shown continued improvements in related measurements such as the number of coups, the amount of repression, and the durability of peace settlements.Though civil wars and lesser military conflicts have occurred, there has been a continued absence of direct conflict between any of the largest GDP economies; instead, wealthier countries have fought limited small-scale regional conflicts with poorer countries.Conflicts involving smaller economies have also gradually tapered off.