Power and Developments

Question 1

What is economic power?

Answer 1

Often measured in GDP but may also include factors such as trade balances, level of debt, stability of economic growth and contributions to international programmes (e.g. NGOs, international aid and research and development).

Question 2

What is military power?

Answer 2

This not only includes the size of a nation’s standing army but also its global reach (a state’s ability to deploy anywhere at any time).

Question 3

What is cultural power?

Answer 3

Represents a state’s global cultural outreach for example through television, film, food, fashion, celebrities and brand names - this however makes it hard to measure.
Cultural power can be influenced by globalisation.

Question 4

What is diplomatic power?

Answer 4

This includes a number of features, including elements of structural power, the reach of its foreign policy and the global impression a state makes, together with its ability to utilise its power of influence.
For a state to exert diplomatic strength it should be prepared to provide global leadership for a range of issues.

Question 5

What is population power?

Answer 5

Whilst this is easy to measure, it may have complexities for example a large population can give a state power but also create problems such as poverty which could preoccupy the state.
It is also important to note whether the state has an ageing population or not and fertility rates.

Question 6

What is an example of issues of population power?

Answer 6

Russia has a declining population due to low fertility rates.

Question 7

What is structural power?

Answer 7

Represents the state’s capacity to influence intergovernmental organisations such as the UN, G7, G10 and the Bretton Woods Institutions.

Question 8

What is an example of structural power?

Answer 8

For example, the US provides the largest share of funding for the IMF and World Bank.

Question 9

What is regional power?

Answer 9

Some states have significant influence in their respective regions, they may pool sovereignty to enhance their influence which may give them a state level of structural and diplomatic pressure especially in terms of their influence over IGOs and NGOs.

Question 10

What is an example of regional power?

Answer 10

Russia is the most important member of the Eurasian Customs Union but may be using it to reassert authority within its immediate zone of influence.

Question 11

What is R&D power?

Answer 11

The amount that a state spends on research and development, some states may develop a reputation as being at the forefront of developments in certain technologies.
This serves as a status symbol and can provide a state with strategic advantage, especially in terms of new technology.

Question 12

What is natural resource power?

Answer 12

States that are resource rich can possess significant bargaining power and can also be harder to sanction due to other states’ dependence on their resources - states could also be more independent.

Question 13

What is an example of the negatives of natural resource power?

Answer 13

It could also be a hindrance for example those in Sub-Saharan Africa as powerful states could try to economically dominate poorer countries, relegating them to a state of neocolonial dependency.

Question 14

What is hard power?

Answer 14

Defined by the more physical elements of military and economic power- these are both command power, through which a state can change the actions of a rival state.
Hard power therefore focuses on the ways in which a nation-state can compel obedience to its will.

Question 15

What is soft power?

Answer 15

The way in which a nation-state achieves its objectives through the attractiveness of its culture and political system - mainly focuses on non-military and non-economic ways in which a state can persuade other states.

Question 16

What is an example of soft power?

Answer 16

A recent example would be ‘vaccine diplomacy’ where the West has generally vaccinated their own populations while countries like China, Russia and India have been focusing on sharing vaccine stocks with poorer countries to improve their soft power.

Question 17

What is smart power?

Answer 17

Where a state uses both hard and soft power methods to achieve its aims - for example the Obama Administration.

Question 18

What are arguments for hard power?

Answer 18

Without a strong military, states do not have the capacity to defend themselves or use military forces as a threat.

Economic power is essential to be taken seriously on a global scale and to be influential in punishing other states for example with economic sanctions.

Hard power enables countries to be less reliant and therefore less at the mercy of other states’ behaviours - can act more in their own national interest and get quicker results.

For democratic governments, hard power is appealing to their electorate with many voters seeing importance in feeling economically secure and protected by a strong military.

For autocratic states, hard power is important to maintain or even enforce stability.

Hard power can provide quick intervention.

Question 19

What is the argument for soft power?

Answer 19

Antagonistic behaviour can only get states so far without them isolating themselves. The most powerful states tend to have strong alliances and therefore a popularity in global politics.

Soft power enables states to be more influential in the long term, with the spread of culture, ideas and value. This can enable states to win over hearts and minds abroad too, creating a stronger leadership position.

Avoiding the need for military intervention or economic sanction enables states to grow stronger in other ways and focus their attention on other interests.

In an increasingly interlinked world, alliances are more and more important for fulfilling common interests. Soft power is essential to this.

Soft power needs to be built up over many years.

Question 20

What are the theoretical links of hard power?

Answer 20

Realist-
The idea of ‘carrot and sticks’.
Hard power is the dominant form of power and is most significant in defining a state’s strength.
They argue that without sufficient hard power a state’s sovereignty is weakened.
Hard power is crucial in an anarchic system in which every state is competing, and conflict is inevitable.
Hard power is seen as a coercive force and is generally used unilaterally.

Question 21

What are the theoretical links of soft power?

Answer 21

Liberal-
Soft power in the way in which a nation-state achieves influence through persuasion.
This can be manifested through its cultural and diplomatic appeal.
This is an increasingly important form of power for liberals in an ever more globalised world, where interconnectedness is a common feature and systems of global governance are a necessity.
Soft power is generally used multilaterally, and liberals see it as a way to promote stability.

Question 22

What are the theoretical links of smart power?

Answer 22

Liberal/softer realist-
Mostly a liberal ideas but softer realists may see the merits of using soft power to reinforce hard power.

Question 23

What are examples of smart power?

Answer 23

The Obama administration’s approach to the middle east used soft power (e.g. in Cairo speech) in combination with hard power (e.g. drone strikes).

The UN can also be seen as using smart power (e.g. it offers large amounts of aid and humanitarian relief) but also enforces sanctions and military intervention in certain instances.

Question 24

What are examples of soft power?

Answer 24

Germany arguably exerted its soft power during the 2015/26 migrant crisis in Europe, taking a leading role on the issue of accepting large numbers of refugees.

Biden’s inauguration speech indicated a greater focus on soft power with sentences like ‘Much to do, much to heal, much to restore, much to build and much to gain’.

The US had often been said to have a significant global cultural influence, with globalisation even sometimes called ‘Americanisation’, seen in its influence over popular culture, fashion, music and fast food etc.

Question 25

What are examples of hard power?

Answer 25

In 2017 President Trump launched 59 Tomahawk cruise missiles against the Assad regime to deter further chemical attacks.

Russia’s invasion of Crimea in 2014 (and ongoing presence in 2022) has been a clear challenge to Ukraine’s sovereignty through the use of hard power.

The economic sanctions placed on Russia by various countries as a result of its actions in Crimea, including Australia, Canada and the US, and regional blocs and organisations such as the EU and NATO.

Question 26

Who coined the term smart power?

Answer 26

Joseph Nye

Question 27

Explain how the Cold War was an example of bipolarity.

Answer 27

The two major global superpowers who were equally matched were the Soviet Union and the ‘West’.
The UN became largely redundant as the US and Soviet Union were permanent members of the UNSC so could veto perceived threats to their own interests.
Each superpower also has its own military alliances, for example the US with NATO and the Soviet Union with the Warsaw Pact.
In addition, Israel had close ties with the US and Cuba with the Soviet Union, while both superpowers continually sought to reduce the other’s influence in non-aligned states such as Egypt, India and Indonesia.

Question 28

To what extent does/can bipolarity lead to greater global stability?

Answer 28

Realists believe the Cold War promoted peace as the existence of two evenly balanced powers meant that neither side was capable of eliminating the other. A balance of power as achieved as both sides appreciated the limits of what they could achieve.

This created an equilibrium that neither side was prepared to break as there was a threat of mutually assured destruction.

Some argue that the Cold War bipolarity encouraged understanding, communication and conflict resolution, since both sides understood that often the best way of advancing their own interests was by working with the other.

Question 29

To what extent does/can bipolarity lead to greater global instability?

Answer 29

Liberals believe that bipolar is destabilising and dangerous as both sides will continually be advancing their military, diplomatic and economic interests at the expense of the other.

Liberals claim that the Cold War was much more defined by very long periods of mutual distrust and antagonism, as illustrated by US paranoia about a ‘missile gap’ in the 1950s.

The way in which both the USSR and US in the 1980s became very close to provoking direct military confrontation was due to the profound distrust between the two adversaries - security dilemma.

Lack of bodies of accountability especially as both were members of the UNSC.

Large costs of weapons and military from the countries which led to domestic problems within the future.

Question 30

Explain how ‘unipolarity’ emerged after the Cold War.

Answer 30

During Reagan’s presidency (1981-89) the US achieved a commanding lead in the Cold War.
This eventually led to the USSR breaking up on 26 December 1991 - this established 15 new independent states. Russia was the strongest and biggest however the rest were extremely weak economically and politically.
This caused the US to achieve its hegemonic (leadership) status, since no other state could globally compete with it.
Ukraine is an example of an ex-Soviet Union state which suffered economically but was also very divided due to many being pro Russia and the others being pro-West.
These tensions flared up during the annexation of Crimea in 2014 and the invasion in 2022.

Question 31

To what extent has/did unipolarity create a more stable global order?

Answer 31

It can promote and encourage global stability as a hegemon that is perceived by most other global players as benign and can act as a global police.

This could be seen in Rome in the ancient world as they provided stability for centuries - this long period of peace was known as Pax Romana.

Question 32

To what extent has/did unipolarity create a less stable global order?

Answer 32

According to realists a unipolar world can be highly unstable as the hegemonic status of one state can encourage dangerous resentment among emerging powers.

Because states are security maximisers in their attempts to protect themselves they will feel constrained by another power’s claims to a global hegemony.

A global hegemon declining in power could make international relations extremely volatile. This can be seen with WW1 since a rapidly growing Germany, emboldened by British failures in the Boer War, decided to challenge what had been the hegemonic status of Great Britain.

It can be argued that a unipolar world can encourage a hegemon to become a ‘rogue superpower’ pursuing its own interests at the expense of international law - for example the US invading Iraq in 2003 without a UN mandate.

Question 33

What are the realist views on the impact of a multipolar world?

Answer 33

Multipolarity represents the most unstable distribution of global power as the system is much more fluid than bipolarity and unipolarity, since there is a constantly shifting balance of power as a number of relatively evenly matched states seek to maximise their influence at the expense of others.
It increases the likelihood of conflict as the shifting balance of power creates fear and uncertainty among the states involved.
In a bipolar world two evenly matched superpowers would not want to risk open conflict and when politics is unipolar the global hegemon can deter the aggressive impulses of lesser powers.

Question 34

What are the liberal views on the impact of a multipolar world?

Answer 34

In the absence of a global hegemon or a superpower rivalry, states are more likely to cooperate in multilateral organs of global governance.
The existence of more evenly matched states therefore provides greater opportunities for cooperation than either bipolarity or unipolarity.
For multipolarity to provide peace and security, nation-states must set aside state egoism and be prepared to cooperate through organisations such as the WTO, G7, G20 and UN.

Question 35

What is the evidence for an increasingly multipolar world (economic/cultural)?

Answer 35

The US is still the world’s pre-eminent power but its economic dominance is being challenged by BRICS and also the EU.

Global brands are challenging US brands and China has become the world’s greatest neo colonial power as they are massively investing in Africa and South America.

China controls a large sum of the US’ debts. The Washington Consensus of free market liberalism is being increasingly challenged by the Beijing Consensus of state-oriented capitalism.

The establishment of the AIIB in 2015 challenges the World Bank which increases China’s influence.

Al Jazeera and RT challenge the US’s traditional dominance of global news.

Germany and UK also regularly compete with the US for pre-eminence in global soft-power influence.

Widespread coverage of human rights abuses such as waterboarding has eroded the US;s global cultural influence. However Biden has been outspoken about promoting human rights.

Question 36

What is the evidence for an increasingly multipolar world (military/cyber-tech)?

Answer 36

China is challenging the US by investing into nuclear submarines and long-range bombers in order to stake its claim as the pre-eminent power in the Pacific. In turn the US has been focused militarily on the Pacific rather than the Atlantic.

Humiliations in Iraq and Afghanistan also demonstrate that there are severe limitations on what the US is militarily able to achieve. For example the lack of either a diplomatic or military lead during the Arab Spring by Obama.

Trump’s foreign policy and the US’s continued withdrawal from the global arena have suggested less military focus overseas.

Russia was emboldened by the Cold War and has invaded Ukraine twice since the Cold War with the most recent being in 2022.

The growing influence of cyber technology illustrates that any power with a sophisticated computer cadre could make the US’s hegemonic status as the world’s most powerful nuclear state redundant. This is why it is an area the Western alliance wants to focus on.

In the UNSC, the US is often finding itself confronted by a more assertive Russia and China.

The increase in IGOs and NGOs as non-state actors disperses power away from states.

Question 37

What is the evidence for an increasingly multipolar world (growth of China and Russia)?

Answer 37

Russia has started conflict with Ukraine and has been involved in conflict with both Georgia and Syria, which has strained US relations.

China’s belt and road initiative has increased their economic power in developing nations, for example many in Africa. Obama tried combating this which could be seen in his ‘Pivot to Asia’ such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership in 2011.

Obama’s relationship with China was seen as more cooperative whereas Trump was more antagonistic.

China also poses a threat in terms of military expansion into the South China Sea as they use it for patrolling its nuclear ballistic missile submarines. The sea is also significant in terms of maritime trading routes and natural resources. Both China and the US have accused each other of acting in an antagonistic way in this region.

The US had tension with China over what it sees as unfair trading of raw materials and raised these concerns at the WTO.

Obama promoted the idea of the US being a leading liberal democracy but this changed with Trump which resulted in significant threats to international human rights. For example in 2018 the Trump Administration received backlash for separating children from parents at the Mexican border. As a result, China and Russia arguably saw an opportunity to pull back from human rights agendas in the UN.