After the end of the Second World War (WWII), the Western world, led by the USA, took the initiative to establish a network of government organisations and other international bodies for cooperation – believing that this would help prevent future conflicts and wars, and develop peaceful ties between countries for common prosperity. A number of organisations were created, with the United Nations (UN) being the topmost organisation, and under it many specialised agencies and programmes were developed for different subject areas, tasks, and geographic regions. Other multilateral organisations also saw the light of day. The World Health Organization (WHO), World Trade Organization (WTO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and others were established. The preamble to UNESCO’s constitution of 1945 reads: “Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.” In 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the UN. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) was created in 1949 by the USA and Canada and nine countries on the European side of the Atlantic Ocean; today, NATO has 32 member countries, and it is the world’s largest defence organisation ever.

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The major Western powers’ imperialistic systems broke up in the wake of WWII when the colonial possessions fought for independence, with the Indian crown colony achieving independence from the UK in 1947, and India and Pakistan were created as sovereign states, followed by a number of other Asian and African countries in the 1950s and 1960s, and some later. In similar ways as European countries were tied closely to the USA through the Marshall Help, officially the European Recovery Programme, from 1947–1952, former colonies and other Third World countries were tied closely to Europe and North America through development aid programmes when they gained independence. Many non-aligned countries developed ties with the Soviet Union.

The World Bank Group, or fully, the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development........

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