Superpowers Flashcards
What are Superpowers?
A nation with the ability to project its influence anywhere in the world an be a dominant global force
Main characteristics of superpowers
- Economic
- Political
- Military
- Cultural
- Demographic
- Access to resources
Economic facts and examples
- High GDP and high levels of trade
- Heavy influence over global trade
- Hard currency held in reserves by other countries
- e.g. USA, China
Political facts and examples
- Permanent seat on the UN security council, together with powerful allies, and many multicultural agreements
- e.g. USA, UK, France, Germany, Russia
Military facts and examples
- High expenditure, largest amount of hardware and personnel, including nuclear weapons
- Could command global military control
- Unparalleled intelligence networks
- Exporters of technology
- e.g. USA, North Korea, Russia
Cultural facts and examples
- Long standing tradition and rich cultural history or way of life voluntarily enjoyed by many around the world, for example music and fashion
- e.g. UK - Common Wealth, the Royal family
Demographic facts and examples
- Significant percentage of global population
- Attracts skilled migrants and other workers
- e.g. USA, China, India
Access to resources
- Able to export and control the supply of valuable commodities for example oil, or able to secure the resources it needs
- On the other hand, multiple resources make a country less dependent on others (energy security)
- Occupying a world location that enables it to command influence
- e.g. Saudi Arabia
What is the UN?
- A group of countries involved in united affairs
- It works on the premise that global powers work together to maintain peace
Secretary generals of the UN
Kofi Annan, Ban Ki Moon, Antonio Guterres
5 permanent members of the UN Security Council
China, France, Russia, UK, USA (all can veto ideas presented to them, meaning they won’t be carried out)
What is hard power? Give examples
- The ability of a country or group of countries to use military force or direct economic influence to make another country accept a situation or idea
- e.g. Military power and economic power
What is soft power? Give examples
- The ability of a country or group of countries to persuade other countries to agree to a situation or idea by making it attractive
- e.g. Culture, history and diplomacy
Economic power fact (hard power)
In 2015, per capita income was 4x higher in the USA than China, even though they have the same GDPs
Military power fact (hard power)
The USA have exercised hard power by confronting the Taliban and bringing about the death of Osama Bin Laden
History fact (soft power)
British Common Wealth subtly controls other countries, e.g. India
Culture facts (soft power)
The BBC is an international broadcaster, English is the most widely spoken language, 2012 Olympics allowed Britain to host a major international event
Diplomacy fact (soft powe)
UK has one of the largest networks of embassies and high commissions
What is a hyperpower? Give examples
- An unchallenged superpower that is dominant in all aspects of power
- e.g. USA (1990-2010), Britain (1850-1910)
What is geostrategic theory (1904)?
- Created by Halford Mackinder
- He identified a region of Eurasia, calling it the ‘Heartland’
- This ‘Heartland’ held the key to geostrategic theory; if one was to control it, they’d be able to control a huge portion of the world’s physical and human resources
Evidence of Halford Mackinder’s geostrategic theory
- There were attempts to limit Germany’s ability to expand the area of land it controlled after WWII
- Post WWII, NATO allies attempted to contain the Soviet Union from expanding into West and South Europe
- Truman Doctrine of the 1950s contained the spread of communism from the Soviet Union to China
Does hard power or soft power play a bigger role in geostrategic theory
Hard power plays a major role, despite soft power diplomacy being more important strategically:
- Gulf war (1990-1991)
- US’ invasion of Iraq in 2003
- US-led war in Afghanistan
What us geostrategy?
- A subfield of geopolitics, is a type of foreign policy guided principally by geographical factors as they inform, constrain, or affect political and military planning
- Geostrategists, as distinct from geopoliticians, advocate aggressive strategists, and approach geopolitics from a national point of view
How large was Britain’s navy compared to Germany’s in 1914?
2x the size of Germany’s, which made it the largest in the world
What percentage of the world did Britain rule over in 1920?
Over 20%, which is 25% of the world’s land area
What was constructed in India in 1920?
61,000km of railway
When did Germany become a more powerful country?
In the 1930s, when Hitler rearmed the country and prepared it for war
When did most colonial powers lose their colonies? Why did this happen?
- 1970
- Post-war bankruptcy
- Focus of post-war reconstruction back home
- Anti-colonial movements (e.g. in India)
What year marked the end of the colonial era?
1945
What does the term unipolar mean?
Unipolarity in international relations is a distribution of power in which one state exercises most of the cultural, economic and military influence
What is neo-colonialism?
The use of investment, trade and culture to influence independent countries instead of direct governance (soft power tactics)
What ideas does the USA represent?
- Capitalism
- Free market economy
- Manifest Destiny
- Democracy
What ideas did the USSR represent?
- Communism
- Marxism
- Control all means of production
Why were the USSR considered powerful?
They had obtained the Heartland (geostrategic theory)
What does the term bipolar mean?
International relations is a distribution of power in which two states exercise most of the cultural, economic and military power
The USA’s economy grew by an average of what percent per year between 1992 and 1999?
4% per year
How many jobs were were added to the American workforce during the 1990s per year?
An average of 1.7 million jobs a year
What has the unemployment rate dropped to (by 2000) since 1992?
From 8% (in 1992) to 4% by the end of the decade
When did the Space Race between the US and USSR happen?
- 1957
- They competed to see who could get the furthest into space
- It actually brought them together, leading to the creation of the International Space Station
When did the Cuban Missile Crisis happen?
- 1962
- Closest to US/USSR actually fighting
What is meant by the term multipolar?
A world where many superpowers and emerging powers compete for power in different regions
What is meant by the term colonial?
Colonial control refers to the direct control exerted over territories conquered by mainly European powers in the period 1600 to 1900
What is meant by the term acculturation?
A process of cultural change that takes place when 2 different cultures meet and interact
Where did 80% of China’s imports come from in 2010?
Africa, they brought mineral products
Rise in China facts
- Has become a ‘mega-trader’, larger than imperial Britain
- Increased Military expenditure with incursions into the South China sea
- Solar panel production - renewable energy
- Modern infrastructure - high speed rail
- Soon to be the world’s largest economy
- Military technology is growing and challenging the US
Rise in India facts
- Youthful population with a large economic potential
- English is widely spoken and graduate education is widespread
- Nuclear armed and has sophisticated space missile technology
- Demographically larger and will increase in size, giving India potential richness as the economy grows
Rise in Russia facts
- Opposed USA in Syria
- A nuclear power with a very large military capacity
- Huge oil and gas reserves, a source of wealth
- Permanent seat on the UN Security Council
What does Rostow’s model show?
-Modernisation theory
-Argued that countries developed in stages (1-5)
-Preconditions for take-off (which is about stage 2):
•Exports to generate income
•Development of infrastructure
•Technology becomes more widespread
•More education
•Established banking and financial systems
•Established government and legal systems
When was China’s take-off point?
Around 1995, with GDP growing rapidly from 2003 onwards
What does Frank’s theory show?
-Dependency theory
-Satellite countries provide a range of services to metropolitan countries, such as:
•Cheap commodities (e.g. coffee)
•Cheap labour in the form of migration (‘brain drain’ migration)
•Markets for manufactured goods and locations for investment
What does Wallerstein’s theory show?
-World Systems theory
-It shows global development in an economic context, splitting different countries and nations into 3 categories:
•Core regions (e.g. OEDCs, USA, EU Superpowers)
•Semi-periphery regions (e.g. NICs of Latin America, India, China)
•Periphery regions (the rest of the developing world)
Why is Wallerstein’s theory better than Frank’s?
Wallerstein recognised that countries have the ability to change and develop overtime, rather than just stay as developing countries forever, e.g. China is semi-periphery, however its expected to develop and become a core region
Why do core regions use semi-periphery countries to manufacture goods?
- Cheaper production
- Less regulations (e.g. Free Tradezones of China)
- Cheap services (e.g. Bangalore’s call centres)
Impacts on the physical environment
Deforestation, oil spills, burning fossil fuels, landscape scarring, high resource demands/overfarming
What are rare earth elements?
- 17 nearly indistinguishable, lustrous, silvery-white, soft, heavy metals
- There’s an increasing demand for them as many high-tech goods depend on them
Example of a rare earth element
Neodymium - used in wind turbines and hybrid cars
Processing 1 tonne of rare earths can produce what amount of toxic waste?
2000 tonnes
What did the Green Revolution in India cause? What was it a result of ?
- Soil degradation and chemical run-off of excess fertilisers (eutrophication)
- Trying to meet demands of food supply
What fraction does China account for for the world’s coal consumption?
1/2, but they only have 19% of the world’s population
How many tonnes of iron were mined in China in 2014?
1500 million tonnes
Coal burning power stations decrease air quality in which emerging power cities (that exceed WHO safe limits)?
Beijing, Shanghai, Delhi and Mumbai
In 2014, China accounted to what percent of global CO₂ emissions? What were the USA’s and the EU’s percentages?
- China = 29%
- USA = 15%
- EU = 10%
From 1850 to 2007, how much CO₂ has the USA emitted? What about China?
- USA = 339,000 million tonnes, or 28.8% of all cumulative historical emissions
- China = 105,000 million tonnes, or 9% of all cumulative historical emissions
How many middle class people are there expected to be by 2030
5 billion
What was global oil demand in 2015? How much is this expected to rise by by 2030?
95 million barrels a day, 30%
What is a sphere of influence?
A physical region over which a country believes it has economic, military, cultural or political rights. Spheres of influence extend beyond the borders of a country. It represents a region where the country believes it has the right to influence the policies of other countries
How has Russia kept its sphere of influence?
- In 2008, Russia effectively annexed the Georgian regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia after a short war and, as of 2016, continues to occupy them
- In 2014, seemingly in response to Ukrainian moves to join the EU and/or NATO, Russia annexed Ukrainian region of Crimea, significantly raising political and military tension in Europe
- Although denied by Russia, as of 2016 its troops appear to be supporting separatist Russian-speaking Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine
- Transnistria is effectively a Russian-occupied part of Moldova, and has been since 1992. Disputed ownership makes Moldovan membership of the EU unlikely
- The extra-terrestrial Russian enclave of Kaliningrad is Russia’s only year-round ice-free port. Russia has threatened to deploy missiles in Kaliningrad in response to NATO’s eastward expansion since 1991
- Despite being in the EU, Finland has never joined NATO, partly over fears of how Russia would react if it did
Southeast China sea - who currently has the biggest Naval force there and what are China doing about it?
- USA
- China have begun occupying deserted islands and artificially building larger or new islands. They’ve also started infrastructure projects on reclaimed land, e.g. in 2014, China begun constructing an airport on reclaimed land on Fiery Cross Reef
Role of Gazprom
- Rapidly became one of the world’s most powerful TNCs, e.g. they’re helping to secure EU energy (Nord Stream Pipeline)
- World’s largest gas supply
China-Africa political alliance - what’s happening?
China have invested FDI in Africa for infrastructure projects, so they can access their natural resources (which they will receive via trade in return)
China-Africa political alliance - opportunities for Africa?
- China provides $2-3 billion in economic and developmental aid to Africa each year
- By 2015, 2250km of railways and 3350km of roads were built in Africa
- Chinese factories and mines bring modern working practices and technology to Africa
- Chinese finance has funded seventeen major HEP projects since 2000, adding 6780 MW of electricity to the continent by 2013
China-Africa political alliance - opportunities for China?
- Annual FDI from China had increased to about $3 billion by 2015 and total stock of FDI stood at $35 billion
- 30% of all infrastructure projects in Africa are a result of Chinese funding
China-Africa political alliance - threats for China?
- Greater interdependence as China relies on Africa for oil, namely Angola, Nigeria and Sudan, as well as copper from Zambia
China-Africa political alliance - threats for Africa?
- Chinese imports of tropical timber have been linked to illegal deforestation in Mozambique
- Skilled and technical jobs are often filled by Chinese migrant workers, estimated to number 200,000 in 2014 (allows for leakage effect back to China)
- Cheap Chinese imports (clothes, shoes, etc…) have undercut local producers and forced them out of business
- Much of the FDI brings only temporary construction jobs; there are more long-term jobs in mechanised mines and oil fields
China-Africa political alliance - how are others impacted?
- USA - loss of power in the global stage due to Chinese investments
- Britain - see it as a threat, e.g. Britain is the largest trading partner to Kenya outside east Africa
- EU - see it as a threat, e.g. over 30% of exports from Kenya go to the EU (trading partners)
Middle East - Religion
Most of the region is Islamic. However different sects, Shia, Sunni, etc., are in conflict with each other both within and between borders
Middle East - Resources
Although rich in fossil fuels, the region is short of water and farmland meaning territorial war over resources is likely
Middle East - Oil and gas
65% of the world’s crude oil exports originate in the region. The oil and reserves have been a prize worth fighting for
Middle East - Governance
Most of the countries are relatively new states, at least in their current form. Democracy is either weak or non-existent. Religious and ethnic allegiances are often stronger than national identity ones
Middle East - Youth
Many countries have youthful populations with high unemployment rates and relatively low education levels. The potential for young adults to become disaffected is high
Middle East - History
Many international borders in the region are arbitrary; they were drawn on a map by colonial powers and do not reflect the actual geography of religious and cultural groupings
Examples of terrorism
- Al Qaeda, 9/11, 2001
- Manchester concert bombings, 2017
Which countries did the Institute for Economics and Peace Global Terrorism Index of 2015 say were highly concentrated with terrorism?
Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Syria
How many fighters does ISIS have?
31,000
Women couldn’t drive in Saudi Arabia until what year?
2018
What does the UN Declaration of Human Rights do?
They set a basic guideline for what every country should go by
How many asylum seekers were there from the Middle East in 2011? How many were refused?
There were 3601 asylum seekers, and 1892 were refused
Factors threatening superpowers? (4)
- Economic restructuring
- Aging population
- Internal conflict
- Energy insecurity
What year was the most recent global financial crisis?
2007-2008
According to the US Geological survey (USGS), what estimated percentage of the world’s undiscovered gas and oil are in the arctic
- 30% of the world’s undiscovered gas
- 13% of the world’s undiscovered oil resources
What is the name of the continental shelf that nations are disputing over in the arctic?
Lomonosov ridge
