Current World Order Flashcards
debates about the current world order
what is the current world order?
what has replaced bipolarity after the end of the Cold War and the collapse of the Soviet Union?
is the wold order unipolar or multipolar?
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER
arguably, the world order is unipolar, with the USA being the obvious dominant power
commentators have used various terms to describe its position in the international system: an empire, a global hegemon and even a hyperpower (a state that dominates all other states in every way)
to be a global hegemon and for the world to be considered a unipolar one, the USA must be vastly stronger than its rivals in economic, political and cultural terms
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s economic power
the US has the world’s largest economy – China is predicted to overtake the US in the future but for now, the US dominates economically
in 2015, its GDP (Gross Domestic Product) was just over $18 trillion. By 2017, this rose to just over $19 trillion, with China at just over $12 trillion
however, the US is not vastly more powerful than other states in terms of its economy
China’s economy is catching up and is expected to supersede the US and become the largest economy in the world, and the combined GDP of EU states is not far short of the US at $16 trillion
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s military power
the US is also the world’s strongest military power
in 2012, it spent more than 4% of its GDP (more than half of global military spending) on its armed forces
however, the US has fewer nuclear warheads than Russia (6970 versus 7300)
it has also suffered some humiliating military defeats; VIETNAM, TEHRAN, AFGHANISTAN, IRAQ, SYRIA, THE COLD WAR
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s military power
military defeats (Vietnam, Tehran and Syria)
the USA has also suffered some humiliating military defeats…
VIETNAM – the US could not prevent the takeover of Vietnam by the communist Viet Cong
TEHRAN – it failed to rescue American embassy officials taken hostage in Tehran in 1979
SYRIA – the USA has been powerless in resolving the Syrian crisis, it has taken Russian airstrikes and support for the Syrian Assad regime to bring IS to heel
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s military power
military defeats (Afghanistan and Iraq)
AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ – in 2001, the US suffered the 9/11 attacks, the worst terrorist atrocity in its history
in retaliation, the US launched its ‘War on Terror’ which led to the removal of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and the Iraq War, but the Taliban have not been eradicated from Afghanistan and Iraq is not yet stable
it also took ten years to track down Osama bin Laden, the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s military power
military defeats (Cold War)
THE COLD WAR – it is debatable whether the US defeated communism in the Cold War
communism was an unsustainable political and economic system that was bound to collapse anyway
the Cold War may have prolonged it, as fear of an American attack caused Russians to be less critical of the system, but this does not mean that the US is what defeated communism
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s cultural power (suggesting it is the hegemon)
it has a large population of over 320 million people, who are highly educated with more than 80% living in urban areas – all indicators of a highly developed country
English is the most widely spoken second language in the world, a development which was driven by US economic development and the desirability of its products and entertainment industry
US brands such as Coca Cola are recognised in almost every country, US corporations like Apple have become internationally recognised as technologically advanced and superior, Hollywood is the highest grossing film industry in the world and US music and television programmed can be accessed across the globe
the US is recognised as the ‘leader of the free world’ and its values, such as democracy and human rights, are embraced across the globe
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s cultural power (suggesting it is not the hegemon)
however, to call the USA an empire is to overstate its influence
the USA is not a traditional imperial power, it has no colonies and there has been no mass migration of American citizens to such colonies
there is also resistance to American political and cultural leadership in the world
the emergence of groups such as Al-Qaeda and Islamic State, promoting a fundamentalist view of the Islamic religion and authoritarian political systems, can be seen as a rejection of American culture
UNIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: the USA’s political power
politically, the US can exert power and has a high level of influence because it is the chief architect of international political and economic institutions, such as the United Nations and the IMF
it dominates these institutions, particularly NATO
MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER
on the other hand, it can be argued that the world system is a multipolar one with multiple poles of power rather than just one global hegemon
arguably, the US is not the global hegemon as its dominance is challenged by numerous other states
MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: who is the US challenged by?
in the 1970s, Japan and Germany emerged as leading economies
a decade later, the European Economic Community (now the EU) began to be recognised as a force in international relations
more recently, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) have made it onto the list of the top 20 most developed countries in the world
altogether, these countries account for more than 50% of the world’s population, about 75% of global GDP and 80% of global defence spending
some political commentators believe that China will prove to be a strong challenger to US pre-eminence as the 21st century progresses
MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: China
the most obvious candidate to challenge US dominance is China
some political commentators believe that China will prove to be a strong challenger to US pre-eminence as the 21st century progresses
while the 20th century is claimed to have been the ‘American Century’, many predict that the 21st century will be the ‘Chinese century’
MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: China’s economic power
growth rates
China’s rapid economic progress since the market reforms of Deng Xiaoping have led it to emerge as an economic superpower
annual growth rates have been 8–10% a year for almost 30 years, which is twice the levels of western economies
if the rate of economic growth continues at this pace – in 2010 the Chinese economy was 90 times bigger than it had been in 1978 – China will soon have the most developed economy in the world
MULTIPOLAR WORLD ORDER: China’s economic power
other key advancements
in 2009, China became the world’s largest exporter
in 2010, it overtook Japan as the second-largest economy and is expected to overtake the US and become the world’s largest economy
it easily weathered the global financial crisis of 2008, being one of the few countries in the world to be running a surplus (spending less than it earns in tax revenues)
