WORLD WAR III
World War III (also WWIII, or the Third World War) denotes a hypothetical successor to World War II (1939-1945), that is likely nuclear and extremely devastating in nature.
This war is anticipated and planned for by military and civil authorities, and explored in fiction in many countries. Concepts range from purely conventional scenarios or a limited use of nuclear weapons to the destruction of the planet.
With the development of the arms race, before the collapse of the Soviet Union and end of the Cold War, an apocalyptic war between the United States and the Soviet Union was considered plausible, if not likely. The Doomsday Clock has served as a symbol of historic World War III close calls since the Truman Doctrine went into effect in 1947.
WWIII - The greatest threats.
During the Suez Crisis of 1956, Soviet Premier Nikolai Bulganin sent a note to British Prime Minister Anthony Eden warning that "if this war is not stopped it carries the danger of turning into a third world war."
The Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962 is generally thought to be the historical point at which the risk of World War III was closest, but there have been other events that historians have listed as close calls to World War III.
On 26 September 1983, only 25 days after the Soviets shot down civilian airliner Korean Air Lines Flight 007, a Soviet early warning station under the command of Stanislav Petrov falsely detected five inbound intercontinental ballistic missiles. Petrov correctly assessed the situation as a false alarm , and hence did not report his finding to his superiors. Petrov's action likely averted a nuclear conflict, as the Soviet policy at that time was immediate nuclear response upon discovering inbound ballistic missiles.
During Able Archer 83, a ten-day NATO command post exercise starting on November 2, 1983, the Soviets readied their nuclear forces and placed air units in East Germany and Poland on alert. Many historians believe this exercise was a close call to a start to World War III.
On 12-26 June 1999, Russian and NATO forces had a standoff over the Pristina Airport in Kosovo. In response, NATO commander Wesley Clark demanded that British General Sir Mike Jackson storm the airport with paratroopers. Jackson is reported to have replied, "I'm not going to start the Third World War for you".
Speculations about WW III.
CIA original operative, Miles Copeland, wrote in 1989 that in the future, World War Three will kick off when "Soviet Russia" dupes the United States and Israel into waging a self-destructive war with the Muslim/Arab world.
