As well there are categories for a nuclear apocalypse-
Category 1:
Totally screwed. These countries have lots of potential targets such as military bases. They are densely populated, and can only sustain a technological society with imports from abroad. They would be the main battlegrounds in a world war, and most of the inhabitants live in potential blast/fire and heavy fallout zones. Even if half the population were killed, there still wouldn’t be enough food, and famine would kill many otherwise healthy survivors. The government would probably fail to keep the country united, and the
society 100 years hence would be very different to what went before.
Examples: The UK, Germany, South Korea.
Category 2:
Heavily damaged. These countries would be very heavily bombed indeed, but are so big that large areas would escape destruction. They would lose most of their urban populations, but many rural dwellers would survive the initial strike. However, they would face an uncertain future. Such countries would face many decades of unimaginable hardships, and would probably never regain their former standards of living. But their governments might just be able to keep the country together (by fair means or foul), and the culture of the nation would probably survive, too.
Examples: The USA, Russia.
Category 3: “
Lightly” damaged. These countries have few targets on home soil, and comparitively few inhabitants would die on the first day. But fallout (and refugees) from neighbouring countries could be a serious risk, and the destruction of the international trade system would cause an enormous drop in living standards. Such countries would drop from their current standards of living to a state reminiscent of today’s North Korea. The government would probably keep the country together, though, and the nation’s culture would continue.
Examples: Scandinavia, Turkey
Category 4:
Initially unscathed. Some countries, especially in the Southern Hemisphere, will probably escape direct attack from either side. Furthermore, they would have enough agricultural land per inhabitant to keep everyone fed, and are far enough removed from the conflict to avoid major fallout and refugee problems. However, such countries will have lost their major trading partners, and so will experience a 1930s-style depression. No one “wins” a nuclear war, but these places would lose least.
Examples: New Zealand, Chile
Category 5:
Unscathed, but still screwed. These countries would escape attack and severe fallout, but are so dependent on imports to sustain their populations that they would be in dire straits. This is especially true of those countries that also have significant internal divisions, which would be exacerbated by the sudden lack of imports.
Examples: Nigeria, Bangladesh, Haiti
