World War III (2015: Nuclear Solution)

World War III (often abbreviated to WWIII or WW3), also known as the Third World War, was a global thermonuclear war that occurred in December 2015. The initial opposing military alliances were the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). The war started when Russia began a nuclear strikes against the US and Canadian Pacific Northwest and quickly spread to Europe. 
The Russians destroyed the major cities in Pacific Northwest, Alaska, and the surrounding areas in North America while annihilating major cities in all former Warsaw Pact territory (minus eastern Germany) in Europe within two hours. Serbia sided with Russia and nuked the former Yugoslavia around this time. North Korea nuked South Korea. Upon failure to nuke Seoul, Kim Jong-un initiated a nuclear strike on Seoul only to be killed in a Chinese nuclear bombing of Pyongyang. 
Korean Peninsula was transformed into nuclear wasteland afterward. Russia began a nine hour nuclear strikes in Central Europe which was the largest of the war and ended with Russian ICBMs detonating in the British Midlands after NATO interceptors failed to intercept missiles that filled the sky in the region. Russian ICBMs, which were detonated in major cities in North America, launched towards and detonated in as far as Idaho and Alberta in the east and northern California in the south. 
As Russian victory over NATO seemed very likely, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) took a more active role in the war. As such, China began a series of nuclear attacks against Taiwan, Okinawa, and the disputed Spratly Islands. The war ended with Russian victory following the signing of the armistice of 23 December 2015. The Treaty of Fort Ross was signed on 1 January 2016, formally ending the Third World War with terms favoring the All-Russian Federation and the reshaping of the global geopolitical setting.
During the evening of 23 December 2015, Russian ICBMs were detonated in several cities throughout the Pacific Northwest including Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, etc. US Army were sent in to deal with the problem. Shortly after, numerous nuclear attacks disrupted communications throughout the West Coast and a number of widespread power outages caused by EMPs were reported.
The situation spiraled out of control as the Russian ICBMs had launched towards Seattle and the surrounding areas. Russian nuclear submarine simultaneously launched dozens of nuclear SLBMs at military installations throughout the Pacific Northwest as well as Alaska and northern California. Less then one-half hour following initial attacks, additional Russian ICBMs detonated in several coastal cities in British Columbia (Victoria, Vancouver, etc.), Washington State (Olympia, Port Townsend, Raymond, etc.), and Oregon (Portland, Astoria, Coos Bay, etc.). Additionally, Russian nuclear bombs were dropped into several inland cities and towns in British Columbia (Surrey, etc.), Washington State (Fork, Centrailia, Aberdeen, etc.), and Oregon (Eugene, Salem, Medford, etc.).
US President Barack Obama condemned the Russian attacks as a blatant act of war against the United States of America; Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made a similar statement. In an emergency session, the United States Congress had declared a state of thermonuclear war with the All-Russian Federation in response to the invasion and President Obama had immediately signed said declaration. Canada quickly followed suit since their country, too, was under attack. Both countries also jointly invoked Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty which stated an attack on one or more members of NATO was an attack on all. The invocation was almost immediately confirmed by NATO and the Third World War had officially begun. A few days later, the War Powers Act of 2015 was passed overwhelmingly in both houses of Congress and took effect immediately. The powers of the Executive Branch were greatly increased and the military draft was returned. A war tax was also implemented. The federal government shutdown also ended at this point.
On Christmas Day, Russia began an nuclear bombing of the US State of Alaska with nuclear strikes on the Aleutian Islands, Bering Islands, Nome, and Anchorage. nuclear bombs were also dropped in Barrow, Fairbanks, and Anchorage.
The US Pacific Fleet quickly moved to prevent further Russian nuclear strikes but by the time a blockade was established, the enemy had already brought in the necessary manpower and equipment to maintain the bombing. And with the majority of US active duty personnel in the region currently deployed overseas, the National Guard was practically the only military opposition that the invaders initially encountered.
Heavy nuclear bombings took place throughout the Pacific Northwest coast over the following hour, especially in the urban areas with National Guardsmen, law enforcement officers, and some armed civilians defending against the overwhelming Russian nuclear onslaught. Evacuations were attempted during the opening days of the war though most were stopped by radioactive fallout established by Russian nuclear bombing around the affected cities. By the end of the day, the Russians were able to nuke the cities and towns within them. The Russians made similar progress in Alaska as well.
Less then hour following the outbreak of nuclear hostilities in the Pacific Northwest, the Russians launched numerous nuclear strikes against NATO military installations throughout Eastern Europe as well as Denmark and Germany. While the Russians thus used nuclear weapons, the devastation the attacks inflicted could not be denied.
The Russians coordinated the nuclear strikes with a full-scale nuclear bombing of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, and Moldova. Russian nuclear bombs were dropped into key areas throughout Poland while nuclear submarine launched a SLBM towards the Polish city of Gdansk. Additionally, a second nuclear submarine launched a SLBM towards the Romanian city of Constanta. Several hundred thousand Russian IRBMs were involved in this new strikes. The Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) also took part in the bombing. 
The nuclear bombing of Tallinn and Riga both began within 48 hours from the start of the bombing and ended less then a day later with Russian ICBMs destroying both cities. The nuclear bombing of Vilnius had begun within the same time period but lasted longer then a day and was seen as the deadliest bombing of the war so far. Less then a hour following the outbreak of nuclear hostilities, the Baltic States were reduced to radioactive ash which marked a major blow to NATO. Slovakia also reduced to radioactive ash around the same time following Russian nuclear bombing of Bratislava. The nuclear bombing of Chișinău didn't last even in hour before the Moldovan government collapsed. A significant amount of border territory within Poland, Hungary, and Romania was also reduced to radioactive ash. The Polish city of Gdansk and Romanian city of Constanta were reduced into wasteland. Russian IRBMs turned the Polish cities of Ludz, Torun, and Lublin into radioactive desert.
From the start of the attacks, the Russians launched their ICBM toward the Polish capital city of Warsaw. The Russians also employed the dreaded Iskander tactical ballistic missile system, targeting NATO positions in and around Warsaw with nuclear warheads. The nuclear bombing of Warsaw began only a few days into the conflict as Russian ICBM reached and detonated in the city. Intense nuclear warfare was fought through the remaining minutes of the day with massive losses on both sides and several buildings obliterated.
To the north, Russian ICBMs stationed in Murmansk Oblast staged a nuclear strikes on Norway following the outbreak of nuclear hostilities. Within one hour, the Russians had turned most of the Norwegian county of Finnmark into radioactive desert. With this bombing, the possibility of a NATO retaliation in the north greatly diminished.