The imperialism play a role in sparking World War I is A, Germany's desire for colonies overseas provoked military incidents with Britain and France. Germany's Aims in the First World War have had a tendency to concur that the real reason for World War I was Imperial Germany's assurance to end up plainly a "politically influential nation" or superpower by devastating Russia and France in what it trusted would be a brief and unequivocal war, similar to the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71.