Superpowers Flashcards

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1
Q

What is free market capitalism?

A

It encourages private ownership of industries, competition and trade.

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2
Q

What is a centrally planned economy?

A

Industry, land, property and profit is solely government-owned. There is no competition and prices remain stable.

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3
Q

An example of a centrally planned economy

A

North Korea - they aim to be fully self-sufficient.

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4
Q

Is China a centrally planned economy or capitalist state?

A

Chins was originally a centrally planned economy but has accepted private ownership of certain industries in recent years while still obtaining the largest share in the company in order to hold the greatest level of control.

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5
Q

What is an IGO?

A

A committee of countries who work together to gain global financial and political stability.

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6
Q

World Bank?

A

Loans money to developing countries so that they can industrialise.

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7
Q

IMF?

A

Provides financial assistance to developing countries as long as they trade liberalise.

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8
Q

WTO?

A

Regulates world trade and encourages the implementation of reduced tariffs on trade.

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9
Q

WEF?

A

A group of political leaders and businessmen who aim to promote their economic ideologies globally.

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10
Q

What is a criticism of IGOs?

A

They aim to help countries grow in a capitalist/westernised way while still retaining the USA’s superpower status. Instead, many countries may prefer a protectionist approach which involves protecting local industries from the threat of domestic goods.

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11
Q

How many people were employed in the coal mines in 1980 compared to the mid 1990s?

A

1980 - 240,000
Mid 1990s - 13,000

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12
Q

How much of Las Vegas’ water comes from the Colorado River and why is this a challenge to the USA?

A

90% but the Colorado River is drying up due to over abstraction. This demonstrates that the USA’s natural gas reserves are depleting and therefore they are risking not being self sufficient (a superpower characteristic).

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13
Q

What is a stat that shows the significance of the EUs ageing population ?

A

By 2025, 20% of EU citizens will be over 65.

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14
Q

What is a stat that shows the USA’s ageing population?

A

The number of citizens aged 65+ will more than double in the next 49 years.

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15
Q

What was the youth unemployment rate in the EU in 2015?

A

22%

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16
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for the impacts of rising resource consumption on people and the environment?

A

1) impact on future generations - EU vs China
2) environmental degradation - India’s water scarcity
3) social inequality - Haiti’s reliance on imported oil

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17
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for where the biggest tensions lie?

A

1) territory - Russia and Ukraine / South China Sea
2) intellectual property rights - USA and China
3) physical resources - Arctic Circle

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18
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for impact on people and environment as a result of increasing economic ties between emerging and developing world?

A

1) opportunities - Port of Lamu and HEP plants
2) challenges - Chinese migrant workers / neo-colonial type relationship

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19
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for whether the rising influence of China and India is increasing tensions globally and within the Asia region?

A

1) territorial disputes - South China Sea (Philippines and Taiwan)
2) economic tensions - OBOR (Malaysia and China)
3) environmental/resource strains - River Ganges (Bangladesh, India, Nepal and China)

20
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for the most significant tensions within the Middle East and with superpowers and emerging powers?

A

1) oil and gas - 65% of crude oil
2) religion - Iraq Sunni and Shia
3) governance - constitution of modern Iraq undermined by the Kurdistan regional government

21
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for the EU and USA’s biggest challenges?

A

1) ageing population - EU and USA
2) exploitation of resources - USA water and natural gas
3) economic restructuring - UK (Thatcher) and USA

22
Q

What are the three main assessment themes for the future of superpower status?

A

1) economic power - China’s GDP
2) access to resources - China rare earths and India solar and wind
3) military power - USA and China

23
Q

Which three main points would you talk about when assessing the extent to which superpowers’ rising demand for physical resources has led to both environmental and political challenges?

A

1) impact on future generations - China and EU’s differing view points (political)
2) environmental degradation - water use in India (environmental)
3) social inequality - Haiti not affording oil (political)

24
Q

How much have China spent in Malaysia as part of OBOR?

A

$292 billion

25
Q

How much sewage is dumped into the Ganges river daily?

A

3 million litres

26
Q

How much of the worlds crude oil reserves originate in the Middle East?

A

65%

27
Q

What is the proportion of Sunni and Shia Muslims in Iraq?

A

Sunni - 30/35%
Shia - 60/65%

28
Q

How do superpowers and emerging powers play a key role in global action?

A

Crisis response
Conflict response
Climate change

29
Q

What is crisis response?

A

During times of crisis (floods/earthquakes) countries provide aid through IGOs and NGOs to help out other countries in the form of finances, building materials and other resources. Turkey earthquake: USA pledged $185 million in aid.

30
Q

What did the Bretton Woods Agreement result in?

A

The creation of the IMF and World Bank in 1944

31
Q

What was established in 1945 and where?

A

United Nations at the United Nations Conference on International Organisation

32
Q

What is the UN Security Council?

A

A group of 15 countries which aim to maintain international peace and security by reacting to outbreaks of conflict. Member countries vote on deploying UN peacekeeping forces or applying sanctions to a country which has started conflict. There are 5 permanent members and 10 members who serve for two years at a time.

33
Q

What are the UN peacekeeping forces?

A

A neutral army made up of troops from all Security Council members which aim to maintain order in areas of conflict but cannot used armed response unless they need to defend themselves from an attack.

34
Q

Explain NATO

A

32 member states which are the largest military alliance.

35
Q

What is ANZUS Treaty

A

A military alliance between Australian, NZ and the USA.

36
Q

What is the Collective Security Treaty Organisation?

A

Russia’s military cooperation with five former members of the USSR

37
Q

How does China cooperate with countries in terms of international security?

A

They are part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

38
Q

What is the IPCC

A

The intergovernmental panel on climate change which is responsible for producing regular scientific assessments on climate change, its impacts and ways to mitigate these impacts. It then feeds this onto the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

39
Q

What happened at the COP3 conference in Kyoto in 1997

A

The Kyoto Protocol was established which legally bound developed countries to reduce their greenhouse gases by an average of 5%. The USA refused to sign this agreement because developing countries duch as China, India and Brazil didn’t have to

40
Q

What happened at COP18 in Doha in 2012

A

This agreed to extend the Kyoto Protocol until 2020. China, India and Brazil still didn’t have to ratify the agreement so the USA, Russia and Canada refused to participate.

41
Q

What happened at COP21 in Paris in 2015

A

Moved away from climate change mitigation and placed a greater emphasis on adapting industries and giving financial support to countries most affected by climate change. However, the Paris agreement was agreed there too which meant that countries agreed to continue reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

42
Q

What happened at COP26 in Glasgow in 2021

A

153 countries established new emissions targets in order to limit global warming to 1.5C but this is unlikely to be enough to achieve the target. There was a focus on the wider economic system to meet the needs of all countries with changing climates and support them for the loss and damage they have suffered as a result of climate change with funding solutions.

43
Q

What is NAFTA

A

A free trade zone between Canada, USA and Mexico. Now been replaced by the USMCA

44
Q

What is ASEAN

A

It aims to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development between 10 south-east Asian states

45
Q

Intro

A

In order to function effectively, superpowers and emerging countries are reliant on resources in order to meet the consumption and industrial needs of its population which, in the past, was a key factor sparking conflict and is likely to continue in the future due to the rise in demand for resources. However, it is also important to understand, on an inferior scale, that tension also exists due to the aggressive expansion of territory in areas which are abundant with resources.

46
Q

Paragraph 1: aggressive expansion of dominance

A

P: Resources can be used as a method to assert dominance over regional powers through expanding exclusive economic zones.
E: China has claimed islands in the South China Sea due to their plentiful supply of rare earths (1.6 million metric tons). In response to the diplomatic and military stand offs in response to this, China have placed military bases across the 3200 acres of artificial islands they have built in this area.
E: This demonstrates how regional tensions can be sparked through broadening spheres of influence. In addition, global tensions can be heightened due to the use of soft power to threaten the superiority of the USA in the current unipolar world.
L: Therefore, it is clear that resources can be used as a means to expand spheres of influence but the dependence on these resources is, arguable a more significant factor contributing towards tension.

47
Q

Para 2: resource demand leading to intervention

A

P: The fact that superpowers are willing to intervene in countries where there is tension in order to guarantee their supply of resources emphasises the importance of having raw materials to maintain economic growth and general consumption purposes.
E: Seeing as conflicts in the Middle East have already reached a point of direct confrontation in the past, superpowers are keen to prevent this from happening again. Due to the Middle East owning 65% of the world’s crude oil, any form of conflict can cause oil prices to increase substantially, having a significant impact on the global economy due to many supply chains being impacted. In the past, the USA intervened in Iraq in 2003/4 through the use of hard military power which, not only allowed them to protect their global oil supply, but, more significantly, maintain their dominance through acting as a global police force.
E: This demonstrates that superpowers will act in order to protect themselves economically, even if it involves using their military strength on a global scale.
L: Due to the growing consumption of resources, this assertion of dominance in order to protect imports of raw materials is likely to become a bigger problem in the future.