The road to World War III

Could the resurfacing of past issues between countries and the current global tensions lead to a deadly World War?

Photo by Sergey Nikolaev on Unsplash

World War III remains a possibility, and it cannot be ignored. Many lives have already been affected by it, and if something can be said for certain, it is that this war will prove more dangerous than the previous world wars combined, especially because countries are scrambling for nuclear supremacy and greater power. 

This grave situation has been developing steadily over years and has picked up pace only now, so we need to understand it well to prevent any unnecessary incidents in the future. Many factors replicate the pre-world-war situations, pointing to the conclusion that World War III is here. But, what do these similarities mean for the countries involved and the world as a whole?

Formation of Alliances 

It was the gradual formation of the Triple Entente (the Allies) and the Central Powers that led to the First World War. This pact of mutual self-defence meant that France and Great Britain were compelled to enter the war against Austria-Hungary to save their allies, Russia, leading to a global war. 

Over the last decade, various alliances and allegiances have been formed between countries, and  the main reason for this appears to be shared common enemies. The relations of the US, for example, with Iran, Turkey, North Korea, and China have worsened due to imposition of sanctions, espionage, nuclear warheads, and the pandemic. The United States and China have particularly had strenuous relations due to visa restrictions imposed by the Trump administration during the brutal Uighur Muslim concentration camps in Xinjiang (resembling  Jewish concentration camps and the Holocaust in Germany) supported by Mr. Xi Jinping. This subsequently led to the US-China trade war; the pandemic worsened relations between the two countries as the US blamed China for releasing a “lab-fabricated life-threatening virus”. To add on, India’s relations with their neighbours, Pakistan and China, have also worsened over territorial expansions. Moreover, the UK and China have had an ongoing dispute over the South China Sea for over a century.

It is easy to notice that alliances could soon emerge between US-UK-Israel-India on one side and China-Iran-Turkey-North Korea-Pakistan on the other. Since these countries span continents, if a war were to break out between any two countries, a small war could easily trigger a deadly World War.

Territorial Expansion and Loss

Many countries, such as Israel-Gaza (over erstwhile Palestine) and India-Pakistan (over Kashmir), have been fighting to gain occupation of land; declaration of war by any country could cause the US, UK, or France to get involved, leading to a lethal war. Moreover, the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan post-US withdrawal could prove harmful, not only for Afghanistan and the US, but also for the world. Firstly, the current situation in Afghanistan could lead to a civil war which, in turn, could set a world war in motion (much like the Spanish Civil War, which set the path for World War II). Secondly, since the EU cannot afford a repeat of the 2015 Syrian migration crisis, they might impose restrictions on Afghans fleeing the country which could stretch EU’s security and fuel support for far-right groups. Finally, Brexit means that Britain is now isolated from the rest of the EU, which could lead to a migration crisis in Britain. I quote Winston Churchill when I say that “isolationism has never served this country [Britain] well”. 

Major Shift in Power Paradigm

The recent war between Azerbaijan and Armenia killed thousands of civilians and caused widespread damage to property in the involved countries. This war also served to reveal the instability in the South Caucasus region (which has pipelines for Azeri oil and gas supplied to the world). It also brought the world on the brink of a world war, since Russia has a military alliance with Armenia while Turkey & Iran were seen advocating for Azerbaijan. Since Azerbaijan is a major oil supplier to the West, countries such as France could also have been roped in. The only factor that prevented a war in 2020 was the ceasefire called upon by the US and Russia, due to the instability in Europe post-Brexit! 

This situation led to major shifts in the global power paradigm resembling the effect of 1904’s Russo-Japanese War, which certainly paved the way to the First World War.

An Ongoing Arms Race 

Like the arms race between the UK and Germany from 1897-1914, we are witnessing the increased need for countries to improve their nuclear warheads, to become the global nuclear superpower. India has increased the number of bunkers along the India-Pakistan border to house 500,000 soldiers, leading Pakistan to build more nuclear arms and increase their military presence as well. Since China and North Korea both have a strong nuclear position, the US has been building their own nuclear weapons for national security reasons.

The steep increase in nuclear warheads in these countries is a major cause for concern, since the use of these weapons in war could erase human existence from this earth altogether!

Sikhism has beautifully explained: “War destroys the enemy; kindness destroys the enmity.” This one phrase embodies the major dilemma faced by the leaders and youth in today’s world: war vs. kindness. While the road to peace seems long, it is one we must take to prevent destruction and meaningless havoc. So, we should take baby steps in the right direction and aim to build a world where war is not an option. Ultimately, we should all focus on forgetting age-old enmities, on building and nurturing relationships, and on simply being human!

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