World War III

World War III, also known as the Third World War (often abbreviated as WWIII or WW3), or simply the War for Independence among the Colonies, began as a war between the United Continental States and the new Colonial Federation, but quickly expanded to a global war between the UCS, Republic of Zaftra, and People's Republic of Da Han Zhong on one side and the CF, Oceana Commmunity Union, and Confederation of Arab States on the other. These supranations eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Earth Federation and the Allied Liberation Front.

The third World War was the most widespread war in history, with more than 1 billion people serving in military units. In a state of "total war", the major participants placed their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities at the service of the war effort, erasing the distinction between civilian and military resources.

Although hostilities between certain supranations had been brewing for some time (most notably territorial disputes between the United Continental States and the Ocean Community Union), the world war is generally said to have begun on 1 December 2111, with the blockade and occupation of the colony of Tauron by the UCS's EarthForce Marines, and subsequent declarations of war on the newly-formed Colonial Federation by the UCS, the Republic of Zaftra, and the People's Republic of Da Han Zhong.

Background
The war was the result of the political Colonial independence movement. Colonists galvanized around the position that the Tithing Act of 2077, imposed by the much-maligned Colonial Administration Authority, was unlawful and unconstitutional. The Colonial Administration Authority countered that it had the right to tithe colonial resources and production. The colonists claimed that taxation without representation was illegal, and that the Colonies and the Earth should engage in free trade to fulfill their various resource requirements. The colonists formed a unifying Quorom of Thirteen and a shadow government in each colony, though at first remaining loyal to their home nations. Dissent and protests led to a number of high-profile skirmishes with CAA peacekeeping forces on colonies like Aerilon, Canceron and Sagittaron.

After repeated pleas to terrestrial governments for intervention, any chance of a compromise ended when the Quorom were declared traitors by the Colonial Administration Authority, and they responded by declaring the independence of a new sovereign nation, the Colonial Federation, on 1 September, 2111. The Colonial Administration Authority, by that point widely regarded by both sides as an ineffective governing authority, was disbanded; the UCS headlined the creation of a new global governing body known as the Earth Federation. The People's Republic of Da Han Zhong, the Zaftran Republic, and the European Commonwealth were all invited to join; the latter refused, insisting that diplomatic efforts to resolve the disagreement be explored before military action could be authorized. The EF's first order of business was threatening the newly-formed Colonial Federation with Declarations of War unless it consented to Earth Federation rule.

The Colonial Federation refused, and by mid-November the fledgling government was in full control of every colony. As promised, the Earth Federation's member-nations openly declared war on the CF, and the EFSC Navy was dispatched to seize control of Tauron. The OCU, CAS and European Commonwealth condemned the move, with the OCU and CAS going so far as to threaten military intervention should the occupation continue. The EF responded with a sudden invasion of OCU-Korea by the DHZ and a massive build-up of Zaftran forces around the Caspian Sea in preparation for a ground incursion into CAS territory. This effectively forced the OCU and CAS into an alliance with the CF known as the Allied Liberation Front, while the European Commonwealth, still crippled economically from the Balkans War a few years earlier, maintained a position of neutrality.

Georgia
The ALF, viewing the build-up of Zaftran forces along the CAS-Turkmenistan-Zaftran border as an indication of an upcoming invasion, attempted to ready it's own forces for a decisive counter-attack into Eastern Zaftra on the other side of the Caspian Sea. While a sizable vanguard was being mobilized within CAS-Azerbaijan, the neutral nation of Georgia was hesitant to allow ALF forces to be stationed within its territory, fearing an armed response by Zaftra.

In order to gain favor with the Georgian government, the ALF quietly offered its assistance in defeating a rebel insurgency that had been growing within the Georgian-controlled South Ossetian Autonomous Region. The Georgians agreed to allow a small force of military operators within its borders in an "advisory role", under the condition that "no substantial military presence, such as the deployment of heavy armor elements, be allowed".

Although the joint counter-insurgency operations enjoyed initial success, a botched mission by the ALF's Joint Special Operations Command resulted in the destruction of two OCU AIPs during an unauthorized aerial insertion-- a breech of the ALF's agreement with the Georgian government-- and the capture of two OCU pilots by Ossetian insurgents. The OCU's elite SPARTAN Team Four managed to rescue both pilots, but footage of the pilot's capture and subsequent rescue was caught on film and soon released to global news media. Armed with physical proof of ALF special operations being conducted along its borders, the Zaftran army swept into Georgia, condemning "foreign meddling in regional affairs".

The ALF attempted to support the Georgian defensive operations with what limited forces it had west of the Caspian Sea, but was eventually forced to retreat into CAS-Azerbaijan, CAS-Armenia and CAS-Turkey. The Georgian government fled into exile as the Georgian capital of Tblisi fell, and Georgia was officially annexed by the Zaftran Republic in a global broadcast on April 18, 2112.