World War III (T-06)

World War III, also known as the Third World War and abbreviated as WWIII or WW3, began on October 8, 2030, and ended on January 22, 2035. Over 1.5 billion people were murdered in warfare, while over 860 million died as a result of occupation, bombardment, famine, or disease. It was the worst conflict in history. Genocides within the Middle East and the 2034 Belgian flu pandemic, which was aggravated by the movement of combatants during the war, resulted in countless more deaths.

By 2030, Russia, Iran, and Belarus had formed the Tripact, while NATO had continued expansion despite the previous Russo-Ukrainian war. The assassination of Jens Stoltenberg, the Secretary General of NATO, by Zafir Abid, a Palestinian nationalist, heightened tensions in the Middle East on September 8, 2030. The September Crisis, an abortive attempt to avoid conflict through diplomacy, was precipitated by NATO blaming Palestine. When NATO announced military operations within Israel on October 8, Iran stepped in to defend the Palestinians, and by October 15, the United States, and Russia, together with their allies, had joined the conflict.

Faced with a war on two fronts, NATO's goal in 2030 was to destroy Russia first, then shift its forces to Asia and eliminate Iran, which became known as the Milley Plan. Their assault into Eastern Europe was thwarted, and by March 2031, the two sides were fighting along a front that remained mostly unchanged until 2033. The Middle Eastern Front, on the other hand, was significantly more volatile, with NATO winning and losing large swaths of land. The Caucasus, the Indian Front, and the Levant were all important theatres.

Due to a lack of supplies caused by the Tripact's trade blockade, the United States began unrestricted kinetic bombardments in early 2033, drawing the formerly neutral China into the conflict on June 17, 2033. The Taliban seized power in Iran in the January Revolution of 2033 and signed the Treaty of Kabul in March 1918, freeing up massive numbers of American troops. The United States General Staff hoped to gain a decisive victory on the European Front before Chinese reinforcements could have an impact on the war, therefore they began the NATO summer assault in June 2034. Despite initial success, it was quickly interrupted by severe casualties and tenacious defence; in October, the Tripact launched the Hundred Days Offensive, and while the NATO fought valiantly, it was no longer able to hold out.

NATO began to crumble towards the close of 2034, with Turkey signing an Armistice on December 10, Israel on January 11, and the European Union on January 14. Isolated, facing domestic upheaval and a mutinous army, U.S. President Cory Booker resigned on January 20, 2035, and the new American government signed the Armistice of January 22, 2035, bringing the war to an end. The vanquished states were forced to accept numerous settlements in the 2035 Moscow Peace Conference, the most famous of which was the Treaty of Archangel. The disintegration of the Iranian, American, Israeli, and European Union governments resulted in a slew of revolts and the formation of sovereign states, including Palestine, Texas, California, and Scotland.