The Second World War ended exactly 75 years ago. The end of the fighting was drawn by the surrender of Japan. The bloodiest and most destructive war in history lasted six full years.
In World War II, 62 states were involved, where 80% of the world’s population lived. 110 million people were drafted into the army of different states.
The total human losses – of servicemen and civilians – were, according to various estimates, from 60 to 65 million, of which more than 40% were in the Soviet Union.
Nazi leaders who were involved in crimes against humanity were convicted during the Nuremberg trials. One of the main outcomes of the Second World War was the establishment by the victorious countries of the United Nations as the guarantor of a new world order.
But the UN did not save the planet from a new split into two camps – this time the eastern, socialist, and western, capitalist. A cold war broke out between the two superpowers, the Soviet Union and the United States, and their supporters, which lasted almost 40 years.