Superpowers - EQ1 - 7.1 & 7.2 Flashcards

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1
Q

Define superpower

A
  • a country with the capacity to project dominating power & influence anywhere in the world, sometimes in more than one region of the globe at a time
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2
Q

Define emerging superpower

A
  • countries with a large role in one of more superpower characteristics, and with growing influence
  • they may not yet have dominance in all key areas of superpower status
  • e.g. China, Brazil, India, Russia
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3
Q

Define regional power

A
  • Regional powers can project dominating power and influence over other countries within the continent or region,
  • but are less powerful outside that region
  • e.g. Nigeria
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4
Q

Define a hyperpower

A
  • an unchallenged superpower that is dominant in all aspects of power
  • e.g USA (1990-2010) & Britain (1850-1910)
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5
Q

What are the 6 superpower characteristics

A
  • economic
  • political
  • military
  • cultural
  • demographic
  • access to resources
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6
Q

Explain the economic characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • Large GDP, high % of international trade, currency used as reserve currency
  • A large GDP creates influence as a potential market and as the home of TNCs which create FDI
  • Underpins the other 5 characteristics
  • The USA has the world’s largest total GDP - $18.5 trillion
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7
Q

Explain the political characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • the ability to influence the policies of other countries through the dominance of negotiations (Both bilaterally and through international organisations)
  • many multilateral agreements
  • permanent seat on UN security council
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8
Q

Explain the military characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • High expenditure, largest amount of hardware personnell, inc nuclear weapons
  • could command global military control
  • unparalleled intelligence networks
  • exporters of military technology
  • Global influence through blue water navy and drone, missile and satellite technology
  • Strong demographic & economic power
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9
Q

Explain the cultural characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • The ability to influence the beliefs, values, ideology and way of life in other countries. ​
    Achieved through:
  • the dominance of media (films, radio, television, internet, education)
  • TNCs or migrants introducing cultural products (food, clothing, music, religion)
  • imposition of viewpoint in international agreements
  • Indicators: global spread of music, fashion, food, language, religion
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10
Q

Explain the demographic characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • significant percentage of global population
  • a large diaspora and workers at TNCs assists economic power through a large market and economies of scale (so more profit).
  • means army can be larger
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11
Q

Explain the resources characteristic for defining a country’s power

A
  • able to export and control the supply of valuable commodities, for example oil, or be able to secure the resources it needs
  • Provides inputs for economic growth
  • May be internally located, or accessed through reliable source countries through transport pathways.
  • Essential for military power
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12
Q

Define hard power

A
  • power through force or coercion and is likely to involve military power or economic sanctions
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13
Q
  • These mechanisms of maintaining power & extending global influence sit on the spectrum from “….’ to ‘….’ power, and vary in their effectiveness
  • Harvard’s Nye argued that true superpowers need to Combine both a ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ power approach to become a ‘….’ power
A
  • hard
  • soft
  • smart
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14
Q

Define soft power

A
  • exerting influence through favour and persuasion, and is therefore likely to be based on cultural power
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15
Q

What are the characteristics of soft power

A
  • Political Values - its democracy or its overseas image.
  • Culture
  • Foreign Policy
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16
Q

What are the characteristics of hard power

A
  • Blue-Water Navy - Military force which operate across the deep waters of open oceans.
  • Green-Water Navy - Military force which operates on coastal waters, ports and harbour
  • Military Personnel - The amount of people who are members of the state’s armed forces
  • Defence Spending - Money spent by the govt. for weapons, equipment, and soldiers
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17
Q

Exemplify the spetrum of hard to soft power

A
  • Hard power- Military force or its threat
  • Economic sanctions and diplomatic actions
  • Coercive policy e.g. tied aid or trade agreements
  • Political influence, moral authority, economic influence
  • Soft power - Cultural attractiveness
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18
Q

What is smart power

A
  • Joseph Nye claimed that the world’s most powerful and influential countries use ‘smart power’ - a combination of hard and soft power
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19
Q

Give examples of hard power

A
  • Military presence and force
  • Military action, or the threat of it
  • Britain’s military actions taken in Iraq and Afghanistan
  • Military alliances such as NATO
  • Diplomatic threats to use force if negotiation fails
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20
Q

Give examples of soft power

A
  • Using the media to promote a particular image and message
  • The global dominance of the USA through TNCs such as Coca Cola and McDonald’s, as well as media, TV, films etc.
  • Culture and ideology
  • Exporting culture in the form of film and
  • TV, or globally recognised brands
  • Exerting influence through favour and persuasion
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21
Q

Give examples of economic power

A
  • Favouring certain trade partners
  • Using aid to influence policy
  • Economic sanctions such as those taken against Iran to try to prevent it from developing its military nuclear capability
  • Trade blocs and alliances
  • Aid and trade
  • Giving allies economic and technical help
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22
Q

Why could hard power be argued more or less effective

A
  • Hard power (threats of force or military action) can get results,
  • but it is expensive and risky
  • Others may view military action as unnecessary or illegal,
  • so the aggressor may lose allies and moral authority (e.g. Russia’s 2014 invasion of the Crimea)
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23
Q

Why could soft power be argued more or less effective

A
  • Soft power relies on a country having respected culture, values and politics, which may be enough to persuade some countries but not others
  • Applied well it is low cost and, because it is about creating alliances and friendly relations, may spread to other countries
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24
Q

Who produced the geo-strategic location, ‘Heartland’ theory

A

A British Geographer named Mackinder

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25
Q

Where is the Heartland area located

A
  • The Heartland is an area of central Asia, bordered by the Himalayas, the Russian steppes and the Arctic.
  • This is very hard to invade, because of physical barriers in the way.
  • It is a power-base, which allows control of the world island.
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26
Q

What is Mackinder’s geo-strategic theory

A
  • the centre of the Eurasian land mass as a key geo-strategic location:
  • if one nation controlled this heartland, it would become globally dominant as it would control 50% of the world’s resources
  • Mackinder’s view was that other countries should work together to balance this ‘Heartland’ power and make sure it did not become too dominant
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27
Q

What are the 3 determinents of power in the Heartland’s region

A
  • whoever ruled the most strategic parts of Europe would command the heartland
  • whoever ruled the heartland would command the world island e.g Europe & Russia
  • whoever controlled the island ruled the world
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28
Q

What 2 factors hinder Russia’s power according to this theory

A
  • 14 bordering countries
  • much of its coast is frozen in winter, so it has few year round ports
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29
Q

What role does sea power play in global power

A
  • Mackinder thought thr ‘Heartland’ could shift geographically, especially as a result of seapower
  • He also believed Britain’s nineteenth century industrialisation had shifted the centre of power westward
  • Using seapower he believed the UK could dominate everywhere from Western Europe to the pacific coast as well as the Eurasian land mass & potentially the world
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30
Q

What is the influence of the Heartland Theory

A
  • It persuades the USA, UK, and other European countries that Russia needed to be ‘contained’, i.e. prevented from spreading outward by taking over new areas close by.
  • It reinforced the idea that control of physical resources (land, mineral wealth) was important.
  • The Trumman Doctrine committed the USA to support those fighting Communism around the world - led to US & allies entering conflicts in Korea & Vietnam
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31
Q

In the 21st century, how does the Heartland Theory seem antiquated

A
  • Modern military technology (e.g strike aircraft) can hit deep inside another country’s territory - size is no longer a protection
  • Physical resources are traded internationally; there is much less need to have them domestically
  • War and conflict are generally seen as abnormal, whereas in the past they were accepted ways of gaining power
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32
Q

Why are geo-strategic policies less important as a result of globalisation

A
  • superpower countries may be more at threat from cyber-warfare than from invasion by other nations
  • some TNCs have become more powerful than most nations through their control of global trade
  • superpowers may get involved with proxy conflicts, supporting opposite sides of conflicts in world regions such as the Middle East
    *
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33
Q

How has the global power shifted in the twenty-first century

A
  • The centre is shifted eastwards towards the country/region with the largest GDP, following the growing importance of China
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34
Q

Which type of power has become the most common way of gaining influence

A
  • ​Soft power has become more common as a way of gaining influence and maintaining power, by creating economic and political alliances
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35
Q

What did the development of empires rely on

A
  • powerful navies to transport soldiers and equipment to areas of potential conquest, and then protect sea-routes and coastlines from enemies
  • large and advanced armed forces to conquer territory and then control it
  • businesses, often govt owned, to exploit resources in the conquered territories by mining (gold, tin) and plantation farming (rubber, tea, coffee)
  • a fleet of merchant ships, protected by a navy, to transport goods back to the home country
  • people from the home country to act as the govt and civil service to run the colonies
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36
Q
  • The period from ………… was an imperial era (denominated by empires)
  • European powers (Spain, Portugal, Britain, France and Germany) conquered land in the ………………….. and built empires that directly controlled territories
A
  • 1500 to 1950
  • Americas, Africa and Asia
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37
Q

What did the development of empires rely on

A
  • powerful navies to transport soldiers and equipment to areas of potential conquest, and then protect sea-routes and coastlines from enemies
  • large and advanced armed forces to conquer territory and then control it
  • businesses to exploit resources in the conquered territories
  • a fleet of merchant ships, protected by a navy, to transport goods home
  • people from the home country to act as the govt and civil service to run the colonies
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38
Q

What statistics show that Britain had the largest Empire

A
  • At its peak in 1920, the British Empire extended over to approximately 25% of the world’s land area & ruled 20% of the population
39
Q

What were the 3 phases of the British Empire

A
  • Mercantilist - 16C - 18C
  • Imperial - 1815-1914
  • Post-Colonial - 1945+
40
Q

Describe how the Mercantilist phase facilitated the growth of the British Empire

A
  • Mercantilism is an economic theory practice used by Britain
  • involving a fiscal policy aimed at accumulating monetary reserves through a positive balance of trade
  • with the purpose of expanding state power at the expense of rival national powers.
  • e.g. building overseas colonies
41
Q

How did Mercantilism contribute to Britain’s already prosperous global image & strength

A
  • contributed to superpower status, beyond being the world’s first industrial country
  • contributed to wealth by accessing resources
42
Q

Describe how the Imperial phase facilitated the growth of the British Empire

A
  • unique expansion of formal empire: rather than securing authority and influence through cultural, commercial and diplomatic means,
  • there was increasing resort to the direct rule of colonies
  • reinforcing Britain’s hard power authority
43
Q

Describe how the Post-colonial phase faciliated the fall of the British Empire

A
  • After World War II, with England’s economy recovering and mounting pressure for independence from colonized territories, British colonial rule throughout the world weakened
  • The British Empire was transformed into the Commonwealth in which numerous states gained independence, but voluntarily associated with Great Britain
44
Q

Describe how modernism justified the British Empire

A
  • The world can be improved by human intervention and achievement.
  • Europe could improve world by colonising
  • Europeans modern, civilised and superior compared to natives of foreign lands British were naturally intelligent
  • British were natural rulers
  • Britain could and should rule the world
45
Q

Describe how Evangelical Christianity justify the British Empire

A
  • evangelism - they spread the Christian word through churches and schools
  • This led to:
    1. Belief that natives were racially inferior
    1. Belief that colonialism was a divine calling
  • Social Darwinism - Strong should survive over the weak
46
Q

Define colonialism

A
  • The direct control exerted over territories conquered by mainly European powers in the period 1600-1900
  • They were ruled by force, with almost no power or influence being given to the original population
47
Q

Define imperialism

A
  • A relationship of political, economic or cultural control between geographical areas
48
Q

Define colonisation

A
  • The physical settling of people from a colonial power within their colony
49
Q

What were the successes of British colonial power

A
  • Effective Railway lines were built throughout the country
  • English language spread throughout the Empire —> Commonwealth countries to become outsourcing services
  • Education for all colonial states was improved - schools were set up & curriculum established —> fill skills shortages in other countries after WWII
50
Q

What are some of the negative impacts of British colonial power

A
  • The majority of crops grown in colonial states were bought by the British at very low prices and then sold off by Britain for large amounts, neo-colonialism, primary manufacturers could not reinvest locally
  • Many colonial states did not have their own govts, which caused severe protests
  • for independence and instability when made independent
  • Discriminating policies & segration were established, which persist
51
Q

What was the world considered during the time of the British Empire’s expansion

A
  • A uni-polar world
52
Q

Why did the British empire collapse
-costs

A
  • the costs of maintaining colonies was too high as Britain rebuilt after WW2
  • Global trade changed: new industrial powers such as Germany and the USA created new markets and more competition—>
  • Trading with African colonies and India were no longer the route to economic superpower
53
Q

Why did the British empire collapse
-opposition

A
  • anti-colonial movements gained popularity - Independence movements in Ireland and India were eventually successful in forcing the British to abandon control
54
Q

Why did the British empire collapse
-technology

A
  • Military technology changed - British naval power was no longer capable of defending British colonies admist the USSR & nuclear threat
55
Q

How did Britain control its colonies

A
  • British military personnel, civils servants & entrepreneurs emigrated to India
  • Symbols of Imperial power e.g presidential palace in Delphi
  • Educated Indians occupied lower administrative positions - cultural assimilation
  • Acculturation - British traditions & a strict social order differentiating White Britsih from Indians
  • Collaboration of Indian Princely states
  • construction of an extensive rail network
56
Q

What examples are there of Britain asserting hard power to maintain their power in the colonies

A
  • Britain invested in its navy until it was the most powerful in the world —> keeping countries under British control, enabling territorial expansion
  • British colonies often started as trading posts in foreign countries —-> once inavded, they controlled over the countries to protect their trade
57
Q

What examples are there of Britain asserting soft power to maintain their power in the colonies

A
  • cultural assimilation with jobs for colonised people in the British administration of their countries
  • introduced sports e.g cricket & held tournaments like the Empire Games
  • British missionaries converted people to Christianity, and especially to the Church of England
58
Q

What are the 4 mechanisms of indirect control

A
  • political - influences on how a country is governed
  • military - stationing of troops & strategic supply of ammunition
  • economic - influencing its actions using financial means
  • cultural
59
Q

Give an example of how indirect control is asserted politically in the post-colonial era

A
  • The USA attempted to prevent the spread of communism through ‘containment’ - the US Marshall Plan helped post-war European reconstruction
60
Q

Give an example of how indirect control is asserted economically in the post-colonial era

A
  • The IMF and World Bank were set up to provide aid to developing countries
  • However, on many occasions, help is tied to ‘structural adjustment plans’ that involve the adoption of more free marker policies
61
Q

Give an example of how indirect control is asserted militarily in the post-colonial era

A
  • The USA currently has 800 million military bases around the world
62
Q

Give an example of how indirect control is asserted culturally in the post-colonial era

A
  • The USA’s Radio Free europe transmitted Western News & information into Eastern Europe & the USSR during the Cold War
63
Q

What is a uni-polar world

A
  • one globally dominant superpower, or hyperpower
  • one hegemon, unchallenged by other countries
  • (in cultural terms, as well as economic, political and military)
64
Q

What is a bi-polar world

A
  • two opposing superpowers, with different ideologies, but broadly equal in status
65
Q

What is a multi-polar world

A
  • many broadly equal powers, with regional influence but less global influence
66
Q

What are the features of Capitalism

A
  • Private ownership of property and businesses
  • Wages are based on supply & demand and level of skills
  • People have a right to make a profit and keep it
  • Ability to buy and sell goods in a free market with little restriction
67
Q

What are the features of Communism

A
  • Government owns land and businesses
  • Wages are determined by government
  • Profits are taken by government and invested into services
  • Supply of goods controlled by the government
68
Q

List some of the key events in the cold war

A
  • US Uses Atomic Bombs on Japan to End WWII 1945
  • Iron Curtain created
  • Marshall Plan & Cominform 1947
  • Berlin Blockade and Airlift 1948-1949
  • USSR Tests First Nuclear Weapon 1949
  • NATO formed 1949
  • US Tests First Hydrogen Bomb 1950
  • Korean War 1950-1953
  • Warsaw Pact formed
  • The Space Race Begins 1957
  • Vietnam War 1959-1975
  • Russians Win Race to Launch Earth Satellite 1957
  • USSR Tests the largest Nuclear Weapon Ever Built 1960
69
Q

What were the 2 earlier Proxy Wars during the Cold War

A
  • Vietnam War – The USA fought directly against groups which were supported by China & the USSR
  • Korean War – Korea was divided into the South which was supported by the US and the North which was supported by China and the USSR
70
Q

Why did the Soviet Union lose the Cold War

A
  • Star Wars - Early 1980 proposed weaponization of outer space - Soviet’s couldn’t match this escalation in defence spending
  • The USSR’s economy was about half the size of the USA, & arms race was unsustainable economically
  • Invasion of Afghanistan - Soviets invaded, so following the Truman Doctrine U.S. responded by secretly supporting the Mujahedeen
  • Proxy wars & supporting allies
71
Q

Define neo-colonialism

A
  • From a left-wing pov:
  • A form of indirect control over developing countries
  • Means ‘new colonialism’, where countries remain under control from overseas - even though they are supposedly independent - form of economic imperialism
72
Q

How is power exerted in a neo-colonial era?

A
  • Strategic alliances
  • Aid
  • TNCs
  • Terms of trade
  • Global Finance & Debt
  • Structural Adjustment Policies (SAPS)
73
Q

How is aid a means of exerting power in a neo-colonial era

A
  • a debt-aid relationship —>
  • developing countries owe money for past loans to developed countries —>
  • but their poverty means they also depend on the hand-outs of foreign aid
74
Q

How are Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs) a means of exerting power in a neo-colonial era

A
  • Countries wishing to have their debt relieved must apply Western Economic Policies
  • devised by the World Bank and the IMF,
  • resulting in a loss of some of their Economic Sovereignty
75
Q

How are Terms of Trade a means of exerting power in a neo-colonial era

A
  • developing countries export low value commodities (tea, copper, cocoa)
  • but have to import expensive manufactured goods from developed countries
76
Q

How are TNCs a means of exerting power in a neo-colonial era

A
  • FDI creates big profits for TNCs, and low wages and little skills for the developing world
  • resulting in the loss of their brightest and most productive people
  • who tend to migrate to developed countries if they can
77
Q

How is global finance & debt a means of exerting power in a neo-colonial era

A
  • Many Developing nations pay huge sums to the Developed world annually in debt interest, often exceeding aid receipts
78
Q

Why is the most obvious way of maintaining power not the solution

A

most obvious way of maintaining power - direct force.
however, power is not generally maintained in this way unless a society’s leaders feel under threat of being overthrown by their people

79
Q

What is cultural hegemony

A
  • Antonio Gramsci describes cultural hegemony -
  • power is maintained hugely by consent
  • The values of those in power were accepted by people and this kept them in power
  • The media subtly reinforce such values - the idea of the powerful then becomes accepted as the way things are
80
Q

Give an example of a uni-polar world

A
  • 1800-1919: British Empire
  • 1990-2030: USA globalised era
81
Q

Give an example of a multi-polar world

A
  • 1919-1939: Inter-war period
82
Q

Give an example of a bi-polar world

A
  • 1945-1990: USA vs USSR, Cold War
83
Q

Describe the current Sino-African trade relationship

A
  • China’s investment and trade with countries in Africa have grown rapidly
  • approx 1 million Chinese are estimated to be living in Africa with large amounts of raw materials
  • 2010 - 80% of Chinese imports were mineral products from Africa
84
Q

What are some positive social impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A
  • Zimbabwe power staion -
  • Angola - agriculture investment gives food security beyond subsistence farming
  • Ethiopia - dam construction energy security
85
Q

What are some positive social impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A

Investment in quaternary/ financial sector in South Africa
Better infrastructure facilitates trade - Sudan rail development

86
Q

What are some positive social impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A
  • China invested over $4 billion in Ethiopia’s energy sector between 2011 and 2018, accounting for over 50% of new power generation capacity.
  • 2023 - launced a UNDP research centre into clean energy
87
Q

What are some negative social impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A
  • wages, working conditions, and labour rights are under threat from lack of sovereignty & exploitation of brash guidelines by Chinese TNCs
  • Corruption is endemic in many countries - this means that money meant for investment and development is creamed off by rich elites - e.g.
88
Q

What are some negative economic impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A
  • local businesses and domestic services may struggle in light of TNCs
  • War and conflict in many African and Asian countries has prevented investment and development - Congo, Vietnam - insecure FDI for TNCs
89
Q

What are some negative social impacts of Chinese companies on African nations

A
  • Nigeria - preferential bidding for oil supplies - secure lucrative new Nigerian construction contracts for Chinese TNCs - worse GHG emissions
  • some corporation leaders have taken advantage of the relaxed environmental laws in the country by creating lots of pollution
90
Q

Since 2000 …… has been an emerging power and is identified as the main challenger to the USA hegemon status

A

China

91
Q

Why is China not a superpower yet

A
  • The limited reach of its military
  • It only has one overseas base
  • The navy rarely leaves the Indo-Pacific region
  • Its economic output is still lower than that of the USA
  • Approximately 25% of China’s population live in poverty (less than US$5.50 a day)
  • Many people in China do not have access to good healthcare, education or clean drinking water
  • Lack of democracy
  • Censorship of media
  • Human rights abuses
92
Q

Is there a global risk of a unipolar world

A
  • A uni-polar world should be** stable** geopolitical status
  • there is only one ‘top dog’, but the** costs of being a hegemon are high and hard to sustain**
  • the USA has been called ‘the world’s policeman’, meaning it is involved in numerous trouble spots all at the same time - increases stability? helps make world safer?
93
Q

Is there a global risk of a bipolar world

A
  • Standoffs can occur - re occasions where the USA and USSR almost ended up in a ‘hot’ wa
  • Situation is stable but can escalate ‘high risk situation’
  • e.g Cuban Missile Crisis in cold war
94
Q

Is there a global risk of a multipolar world

A
  • Lack of dominant power can lead to increased risk of conflict
  • Less stable, creates instability when emerging powers compete with eachother
  • e.g power vacuum allowing the rise of Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan, with no country prepared to stop them