Is a world free of nuclear weapons achievable? North Korea is actively developing its nuclear programme, the fate of the Iran nuclear deal is in the balance, and the United States and Russia are both seeking to modernise their nuclear forces. With the Nobel Committee’s decision to honour the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons with the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize, the Committee sent a powerful message of concern. In the same year, the General Assembly decided to convene a UN conference to negotiate a legally binding instrument to prohibit nuclear weapons, leading towards their total elimination.

World War I, or the Great War, was a global war, centred in Europe, that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918. It involved all of the world’s great powers, which were assembled in two opposing alliances, the Allies the Central Powers. Ultimately, more than 70 million military personnel, including 60 million Europeans, were mobilised in one of the largest wars in history. The outcome of the war subsequently paved the way for various political changes, such as revolutions in many of the nations involved.