ISAS Working Papers

Since the modern state system came into existence following the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, nations have resorted to groupings among themselves seeking accretion of strength and power. This has led to conflicts through the centuries culminating in the two cataclysmic World Wars in the twentieth century. However, the creation of the ‘mother of all groupings’, the United Nations (UN) in 1946 has possibly averted, at least to date, another major manmade global disaster.