The high tensions between the United States and North Korea, India and Pakistan, and a number of other countries have raised questions about the likelihood (or, at worst, the inevitability) of a global military conflict.
Let's take a look at the top 7 possible reasons why World War III could theoretically start.
7. Food shortages
In the context of economic recession and rising inflation, the cost of food in developing countries has reached incredibly high levels. According to various estimates, residents of the world's poorest countries spend from 50% to 70% of their income on food.
In this scenario, those below the poverty line receive less and less food, while those at the other end of the pyramid of needs accumulate more and more resources.
According to the report “The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World – 2018”, 821 million people in the world, or one in nine people on Earth, are hungry. And over 150 million children under 5 years of age are stunted due to malnutrition.
In addition, the rapid growth of the planet's population, climate change, for which many agricultural crops are not prepared, and the decline in groundwater levels, as well as many other factors, also play a role in this problem.
6. Conflict between major powers
According to analysts from the American military magazine The National Interest, World War III will begin in one of the locations where the interests of the world's largest powers clash. These locations include:
- The South China Sea contains a number of disputed islands claimed by China.
- Ukraine. Recent events related to the attempt of Ukrainian Navy ships to pass through the Kerch Strait from Odessa to Mariupol have led to increased tensions between Russia and the United States. And the British publication The Daily Express even admitted that the Russian-Ukrainian crisis could develop into an open military confrontation between the countries.
- The Persian Gulf. There, at any moment, a military conflict could break out between the Kurds, Turks, Syrians and Iraqis.
- Korean Peninsula: Although tensions in the region have eased somewhat over the past year, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un remains unpredictable.
5. Lack of water
About 75% of the planet is water, but only 2.8% is fresh. Of that 2.8%, only 1% is readily accessible to Earth's population.
And if we believe scientists who predict that in the next 100 years the temperature on the planet will increase by 3.7-4.8 degrees compared to pre-industrial levels, we can assume that the value of water as the main resource for life will only grow.
By 2026 in the worst case, or in 2031 (under the most optimistic forecast), the average temperature in the world will increase by 1.5 degrees Celsius due to global warming.
Therefore, the struggle for freshwater resources may be one of the causes of World War III.
4. Lack of non-renewable resources
Non-renewable energy sources in the world, such as coal, oil and natural gas, are disappearing too quickly. For example, according to a statement made by the head of the Ministry of Natural Resources of the Russian Federation Sergey Donskoy in 2016, proven oil reserves in Russia will last only 57 years. And what will happen when the shortage of "black gold", "blue fuel" and other non-renewable resources is felt throughout the world? Strong countries will certainly try to replenish their reserves at the expense of weak countries.
However, no one knows exactly how oil is formed, so it can be considered a renewable resource. Just as there is no reliable information about the Earth's oil reserves.
In Russia, for example, data on oil reserves has not been officially published since Soviet times. This gives businessmen and politicians the opportunity to manipulate the figures depending on the current economic situation.
3. Diseases
We live in an interconnected world, and the question is not if a deadly disease outbreak will occur, but when it will occur. And, more importantly, whether the world will be prepared for it.
And the fact that it may not be ready was demonstrated by the outbreak of the deadly Ebola fever in Guinea in 2014, which spread beyond the country's borders, affecting not only nearby states in West Africa (Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Senegal, Mali), but also the United States and Spain.
This case is unique because this is the first time such an epidemic has occurred in West Africa, and local doctors simply had no experience in dealing with it.
Of course, the zombie apocalypse depicted in Resident Evil is unlikely to threaten humanity. However, attempts to prevent an epidemic by regulating the movements of tens of thousands of people and depriving them of the right to access the outside world are not a step in the right direction.
Such discrimination instead of treating the disease can lead to unrestrained violence and aggression for the right to life and health. Previously unknown diseases, as well as the presence or absence of medical drugs, can potentially lead to a catastrophic world war
2. Information technology
Did you know that the World Wide Web is a product of military development? The development of the Internet began back in the distant 60s of the last century, when the US Department of Defense implemented a project to connect individual computers installed in various defense industry organizations. In this way, the American military wanted to make communication lines less vulnerable in the event of a nuclear war. If some nodes were damaged,
Therefore, the boom in the world of information technology is very important for understanding the mechanisms of relations between nations. Information has become a powerful means of waging wars, both virtual and real. And those who have all the information are in power.
The question of what information should remain confidential and what should be shared is a matter of serious debate today. If confidential information is revealed to the world and this information leads to global scandals (as in the case of Wikileaks), then we may already have World War III. And it is being fought in cyberspace.
1. Arms race
Growing investments in weapons, especially nuclear weapons, pose a potential threat to the world and future generations. Billions of dollars are spent annually to maintain the world's most powerful armies and modernize military equipment.
Although weapons of mass destruction are generally created to deter a potential enemy, they have been used in the past. You may have guessed that I will use the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki as an example.
Trying to "keep weapons with weapons," countries are entering into a crazy arms race that can only end with several missiles flying around the world in a few generations. After that, it will be completely unimportant who was the first to start World War III. After all, it will end the same for everyone.
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