At the end of a religious summit urging leaders to refrain from war, Pope Francis issued a warning about the “domino effect” of conflict on international relations.  

“Peace is urgent, because any military conflict or outbreak of tension and confrontation today can only have an adverse domino effect and gravely threaten the system of international relations,” he stated.

At the conclusion of the seventh Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, the 85-year-old pope gave the warning. The interfaith summit, which is held every three years, drew about 100 representatives from 50 different nations.

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What is the domino effect?

The result of one event starting a series of related occurrences is known as a domino effect or chain reaction. This phrase is most commonly used to describe a mechanical phenomenon and is compared to a row of dominoes falling.

It usually refers to an interconnected series of occurrences with a short interval between each one. It might be interpreted symbolically or literally (as a witnessed series of actual collisions) (causal linkages within systems such as global finance or politics).

The phrase “domino effect” can mean either an event is highly unlikely or impossible, as opposed to being inevitable or highly likely (because it has already begun to happen) (the one domino left standing).

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The domino effect can be easily understood by lining up a row of dominoes with each one spaced close to the others. Pushing the first domino will cause the next domino in line to fall, and so on, setting off a linear chain in which each domino’s fall is caused by the domino that came before it.

No matter how long the chain is, the outcome is the same. Because the dominoes are in a meta-stable state, the energy imparted by the first domino falling is higher than the energy required to topple the second domino, and so on. This chain reaction uses the potential energy of the dominoes.

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Historical overview

The Domino Theory held that communism was an internationalist movement that would spread from one country to the next until it dominated the world, much like a row of dominoes falling one after the other.

A number of US presidents and Western policymakers have endorsed the Domino Theory. As a result, it shaped US and allied foreign policy during the Cold War.