Dimensions of Change in the Post-Cold War World

The revolution of 1989 marked the end of the Cold War. It was also the end of the era that began with World War I and the Treaty of Versailles—an era of unparalleled violence and revolution. We now have good reason to believe that the major conflicts that tore Europe apart during that era causing millions of casualties and untold damage are a thing of the past. It is literally impossible for us, for example, to imagine a future war between Germany and France—two countries that fought three bloody wars against each other in three-quarters of a century.