Comparative analyses of mortality dynamics across countries have long shaped our understanding of mortality inequalities and patterns of divergence and convergence over time. However, most existing studies focus on either mortality differences across countries at a single point in time or on country trajectories, without considering both factors simultaneously. In this paper, we address this gap by introducing a multi-stage clustering framework, applied to 94 countries by sex over the period 1960-2019 using data from the World Population Prospects. Specifically, we model life-table probabilities of death using a time-dependent beta latent variable model and identify a small set of ``mortality states'' that characterise the mortality pattern of each country at any given point in time. We then cluster countries based on their sequences of mortality states. Our results reveal substantial heterogeneity in the timing and pace of transitions between mortality states, including a persistent East-West divide in Europe and distinctive Latin American patterns associated with elevated young-adult male mortality. Cross-country inequality increased for both sexes until the 1990s, before plateauing and subsequently declining. Our proposed multi-stage clustering framework provides an interpretable, time-explicit description of mortality dynamics that jointly captures within-country change and between-country differences, and can be applied to other settings where trajectories of categorical or discretised profiles are of interest.
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