Question

In 1-2 sentences, analyze why an alliance system emerged in Europe in the early twentieth century.

Answer 1

As industrialization, German unification, imperial rivalry and a growing arms race heightened great-power competition and fear of encirclement, European states sought security by binding themselves into defensive partnerships. These entangling alliances (e.g., the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente) aimed to deter rivals but also created obligations and rigid blocs that made local crises liable to escalate into general war.