Superpowers Flashcards
Superpower
A nation with military, political, cultural and resource power and the ability to project its influence anywhere in the world.
Hard power
Gained through force or coercion.
Divide & conquer - Creating conflict within a country and empowering a group to give you rule.
Soft power
Cultural, economic and political infiltration. eg acculturation by British introducing cricket to India
Sphere of influence
An area in which a country has power to affect developments, without formal authority
Neo-colonial control examples
-Terms of trade that favour superpowers
-Developing nation depending on superpower for aid/defence
-Debts & aid with strings attached
Rostow’s Model / Modernisation theory
-Traditional society (agriculture)
-Pre-conditioned for take off (industry, regional trade)
-Take off (manufacture, taxes)
-Drive to maturity (tertiary sector, reliance on trade)
-High mass consumption (interlinked globally)
Core-Periphery theory
Only a certain number of countries can be fully developed. Core countries need peripheral nations for raw materials, debt payments, immigrant workers.
Growing global middle class
-China is biggest car market and source of tourism, so big contribution to pollution
-Middle class use more energy, pollute more, consume more
-India will have 60% water scarcity by 2030
Exclusive economic zone
Each country has potential rights to ocean extending 200 miles beyond coast, decided by UN.
Increasing power of emerging nations
-BRICS account for 45% of global population and 28% of GDP
-By 2030, China, Indonesia, India & Japan will have economies greater than $5 trillion
-By 2025, 440/600 cities with highest GDP will be in emerging countries
Characteristics of Middle East
-Conflict between Sunni (Saudi) and Shia (Iran)
-65% of oil exports
-Weak democracy & disputed borders
-Shortage of water
-High youth unemployment and low education
Zionism
Jewish people wanting their own country. Israel taking land from Palestine.
Questioning military spending
For:
-Deterrent (UK has 4 nuclear submarines)
-Influence in UN/NATO
Against:
-Could be spent on healthcare etc
-Failure in Afghanistan dented confidence in effectiveness
Decline in western power
-Deprivation in de-industrialised cities
-Spain unemployment 12%
-BREXIT, lack of voting choice in USA
-Ageing populations
-Exhaustion of fossil fuels, energy insecurity in EU
-74% of adult Americans overweight
