Superpower

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For other uses, see Superpower (disambiguation).

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An American B-2 bomber in flight. Advanced military technologies such as this allow power projection on an  international scale—a typical hallmark of a superpower

A superpower is  a state with the first rank in the international system and  the ability to influence events and  project power on a worldwide scale; it  is considered a higher level of power than a Great power. it  was a term first applied in 1943 to the Soviet Union, the United States, and  the British Empire. Following World War II, the British Empire was gradually decentralized and  dismantled and  the Soviet Union and  the United States were regarded as the only two superpowers, then engaged in the Cold War.

Currently, the most common belief among mainstream journalism and  in the world of academia holds that only the United States of America fulfills the criteria to be considered a superpower. Sometimes, given the unipolar nature of the world, it  is described as a hyperpower.^[1]

China and  India appear to have  the greatest potential amongst all the other nations of achieving superpower or  near-superpower status within the 21st century and  are often termed as emerging superpowers.

The European Union has economic power about the same as the United States but lacks a comparable unified military. As a result some consider that despite not being politically unified, it  may be either an  emerging or existing superpower, depending on one's viewpoint.

Others, however, doubt the existence of superpowers altogether, stating that today's complex global marketplace and  the rising interdependency between the world's nations has made the concept of a superpower an  idea of the past and  that the world is  now multipolar.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7][8]}

[edit] Origins

The term "superpower" was used to describe nations with greater than Great Power status as early as the 1930s, but only gained its specific meaning with regard to the United States and  the Soviet Union after World War II.^[9]

The term in its current political meaning was coined in the book The Superpowers, written by William Thornton Rickert Fox, an  American foreign policy professor at Columbia University in 1943. Fox used this word to identify a new category of power able to occupy the highest status in a world in which, as the war then raging demonstrated, states could challenge and  fight each other on a global scale. According to him, there were (at that moment) three states that were superpowers: the United States, the Soviet Union, and  the British Empire.

The Suez Crisis made it  clear that the British Empire, economically ravaged by two world wars, could no longer compete on an  equal footing with the Soviet Union and  the United States without sacrificing its reconstruction efforts, even while acting in concert with France and  Israel. Thus, the United Kingdom became the closest connected, most important and  most powerful ally of the United States on the American side of the Cold War, rather than remaining a superpower in its own right.

As the majority of World War II was fought far from its national boundaries, the United States did not suffer the industrial destruction or  massive civilian casualties that marked the wartime situation of the countries in Europe or  Asia. During the war, the United States had built up a strong industrial and  technological infrastructure that had greatly advanced its military strength into a primary position on the global stage.

Following the war, nearly all of Europe had aligned either with the United States or  the Soviet Union. Despite attempts to create multinational coalitions or  legislative bodies (such as the United Nations), it  became increasingly clear that the United States and  the Soviet Union were the dominant political and  economic powers of the newly emerging Cold War, and  had very different visions about what the post-war world ought to look like. This was reflected in the NATO and  Warsaw Pact military alliances. These alliances implied that these two nations were part of an  emerging bipolar world, in contrast with a previously multipolar world. A number of nations undertook various programs to attempt to secure their own independent "superpower" status, such as the development of nuclear weapons by the United Kingdom, France, and  China, as a rite of passage for being a "world player."

The idea that the Cold War period revolved around only two blocs, or  even only two nations, has been challenged by some scholars in the post-Cold War era, who have  noted that the bipolar world only exists if one ignores all of the various movements and  conflicts that occurred without influence from either of the two so-called superpowers. Additionally, much of the conflict between the superpowers was fought in "proxy wars", which more  often than not involved issues far more  complex than the standard Cold War oppositions.

After the Soviet Union disintegrated in the early 1990s, the term hyperpower began to be applied to the United States, as the sole remaining superpower of the Cold War era. This term, coined by French foreign minister Hubert Védrine in the 1990s, is  controversial and  the validity of classifying the United States in this way is  disputed. One notable opponent to this theory, Samuel P. Huntington, rejects this theory in favor of a multipolar balance of power.

There have  been attempts to apply the term superpower retrospectively, to a variety of past entities such as the Persian Empire and  Roman Empire; however the validity of this tendency is  disputed, therefore it  is not widespread practice.

[edit] Characteristics of a superpower

The criteria of a superpower are  not clearly defined, and  as a consequence they may differ between sources, but the following elements are  generally held to be significant.

Military

Ability to project power around the world. In the modern world, this requires not only a strong land army, but also the air- and  sealift capabilities to deploy and  supply that military in furtherance of national interests, as well as public support for doing so.

Cultural

Strong cultural influence, soft power. Cultural influence implies a developed philosophy and  ideology.

Geographical

Wide land or  sea area under its control. Territory allows a country to mine minerals and  grow food, increasing its self-sufficiency. it  is an  important factor in warfare, as it  allows possibilities such as retreat, regrouping and  reorganization, as well as placing distant radars and  missile silos - even a richer country with smaller territory is  more vulnerable in a military sense.

[edit] The Cold War era

Main article: Cold War

██ Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ██ United States of America

The term superpower in this context was originally coined to describe the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and  the United States of America, which opposed each other politically and  economically during the Cold War.

The Soviet Union represented the ideology of communism, and  led the Warsaw Pact, known as the Eastern Bloc in the West.

The United States represented the ideology of capitalism and  led NATO during the Cold War.

The Soviet Union and  the United States fulfilled the superpower criteria in the following ways:

	The Soviet Union	The United States
Political	Strong Communist system of government. Communist ideals spread its influence over the globe. Had permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Strong ties with Eastern Europe and  the developing world. Strong ties with anti-colonialist movements and  labour parties.	Strong and  stable liberal democracy, influence over the globe. Strong companies allowed the US to exert further influence over capitalist nations. Permanent seat on the UN Security Council. Strong ties with Western Europe, Latin America, British Commonwealth and  several East Asian countries. Strong ties with human rights watch organizations.
Geographic	Covered 22 million km², 11 time zones; was the largest country in the world. Covered huge sea area, and  encompassed vast deposits of minerals and  large farming areas.	Third largest country in the world, with an  area of approximately 9.6 million km² [1]. Vast resources of minerals, large farming industry.
Cultural	Vast influence over neighbors, varied and  rich history and  culture. Wielded influence through communist governments and  organizations around the world. Communist ideals attractive to many over the world.	Huge influence over most of continent, integrated culture with Western Europe. Companies sold American and  American-inspired cultural products all over the world. Freedom of speech attractive to many.
Military	Had the largest army in world history (13 million in 1946). Sizable air force, imposing navy. Had the largest territory in the world with an  abundance of strategic resources, the capability to develop advanced military and  space technologies, and  the world's largest stock of nuclear weapons for the second half of the Cold War.	Bases all over the world, particularly in an  incomplete "ring" bordering the Soviet Union to the West, South and  East. Largest nuclear arsenal in the world during the first half of the Cold War — stationed on its own soil and  also in Europe. Strong and  technologically advanced army, and  world's largest navy.
Economic	Was the largest centrally planned economy in the world, and  second largest economy overall. At one point, produced 20% of the world's industrial output.	Largest market economy in the world, and  also largest economy overall.
Demographic	Had a population of 293 million, was the third largest on Earth.	Has a population of over 300 million. Now the third largest on Earth.

[edit] Superpowers today

A pie chart showing the comparison in share of GDP (PPP) between the entities discussed in this article. The entities discussed in this article take up 51% of the world's total GDP.

The post-Cold War world is  widely considered as a unipolar world, with the United States as the world's sole remaining superpower, with the largest economic and  military strength. The assessment of current global politics may not be so easily simplified, because of the difficulty of classifying the European Union at its current stage of development. Additionally many argue that the EU is  underestimated^[10], while others argue that the notion of a superpower is  antiquated, considering the complex global economic interdependencies that define this new century, and  proposing that the world is  multipolar.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][11]}

Russia, as the legal successor state to the Soviet Union, also retains certain aspects of a superpower, such as a vast nuclear arsenal, a large population, the largest territory in the world with an  abundance of strategic resources, and  the capability to develop advanced military and  space technologies.

Some analysts think the hegemonic stability theory explains the current evolution in international relations. Hegemonic states tend to overstretch their power, and  new rivals will become gradually more  powerful, eventually replacing or  counterbalancing the weakened hegemony.

[edit] The United States

Most people consider the United States the only sovereign nation-state, or  country, that meets all criteria for being a superpower.

Geographic factors

• The United States is  the third largest country in the world by land area, after Russia and  Canada. (Counting the disputed Taiwanese area as part of China places the United States in fourth place.)

Demographic factors

• With over 300 million people, about 5% of the world population, the U.S. is  the world's third most populous nation and  the most populous with a high Human Development Index.
• It has a high Human Development Index, according to the United Nations, ranking number ten.PDF.

Political factors

• It is  a stable federal constitutional republic.
• It contributes around 22% of the United Nations budget[2], and  is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (with veto power).
• Its stance on world issues is  usually supported by other nations, especially the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and  Israel.

Economic and  financial factors

• The U.S. has the world's largest national economy with a GDP of over $12 trillion.[3] The US has nearly 30% of the global market exchange-rate GDP.^{[citation needed]} it  is characterized by moderate to high economic growth.^{[citation needed]}
  
• The U.S. has a per-capita GDP much greater than any emerging superpower and  higher than that of most industrialized countries, at USD $41,800.^{[citation needed]} The U.S. has the third largest per-capita GDP in the world, following Luxembourg and  Norway.^{[citation needed]} The average American does, however, spend considerably more  of his or  her life working than does the average European.^[12](see the controversies about GDP).
• Over the past 20 years, America's economic growth rate has averaged just over 3 percent per year.^{[citation needed]}
• The U.S. is  headquarters for many global corporations and  financial institutions.
• American companies are  leading players in in many fields, such as new materials, electronics and  telecommunications, information technology, aerospace, energy, nanotechnology, biotechnology, medicine, bioinformatics, chemical engineering, and  software.
• The country is  a key agricultural and  commodities producer[4] PDF, although it  is dependent on petroleum imports.
• It has a decisive influence on international financial bodies, such as the International Monetary Fund and  the World Bank; the American dollar is  the most important reserve and  convertible currency in the world.

 and  USSR/Russian nuclear weapons stockpiles, 1945-2005."> and  USSR/Russian nuclear weapons stockpiles, 1945-2005." width="250" height="188" longdesc="../../../u/s/_/Image%7EUS_and_USSR_nuclear_stockpiles.png_159e.html" />

U.S. and  USSR/Russian nuclear weapons stockpiles, 1945-2005.

Military factors

• The U.S. spends more  on its military than the next twelve countries combined.^{[citation needed]} As of 2006, it  has the world's second largest nuclear arsenal, carries some of the most advanced strategic nuclear missiles (9-megaton+) and  combines some of the world's most technologically advanced weapons systems with the expeditionary capability to project military power to any point in the world.

Cultural factors

• American culture is  influential worldwide, especially in the English-speaking world (soft power, Anti-Americanism).

[edit] European Union controversy

Main article:  an  emerging superpower">European Union as an  emerging superpower

 is  the strongest power in the world and  gives the EU considerable political power. One may also believe that the EU is  also a superpower - as it  would be if the qualities of its member states are  combined - and  conversely there are  many who do not hold such beliefs. ."> is  the strongest power in the world and  gives the EU considerable political power. One may also believe that the EU is  also a superpower - as it  would be if the qualities of its member states are  combined - and  conversely there are  many who do not hold such beliefs. ." width="180" height="240" longdesc="../../../l/a/2/Image%7ELa2-euro.jpg_cb79.html" />

The economy of the European Union member states, if combined, is  the strongest power in the world and  gives the EU considerable political power. One may also believe that the EU is  also a superpower^[13] - as it  would be if the qualities of its member states are  combined - and  conversely there are  many who do not hold such beliefs.^[14] .

Some may also argue that the European Union is  a superpower, if seen as an  entity^[13].

The EU currently features the world's largest GDP and  consumer market and  has considerable control over the global allocation of resources, yet it  is currently argued that the European Union is  too politically and  culturally fragmented to be considered as a single unit, especially since two of the principal levers of power, foreign policy and  defense, are  exercised principally by the individual member states.^{[citation needed]} Additionally, the EU's military capabilities are  relatively limited, while "superpowers" traditionally wield considerable power in that sphere.

Overall the twenty-five member states also have  significant cultural influences on the entire globe, with European fashion, art and  food being commonplace in nearly every corner of the planet. France and  the United Kingdom are  also permanent members of the UN Security Council and  have veto power. In terms of education, eight of the top fifteen ranks on the PISA were filled by EU member states with all western member states being represented among the top thirty.^[15] Given planned force expansion, the EU will field 4 fleet aircaft carriers as well as more  than half a dozen smaller escort carriers and  numerous surface warships by 2015.^{[citation needed]}

The EU is  composed of many developed countries; by contrast, India and  China are  politically unified but still lack some economic, political, military, and  social development. The European Union contains several current great powers — the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and  Italy — along with 21 other countries.

Also, the EU even seems to have  developed a sphere of influence of close geographical nations, which was typical of the United States and  Soviet Union in the Cold War.^[16] Examples include candidate nations, EFTA members outside of the Union, and  former colonies, especially in Africa. The EU plays the role of a normative hegemon [5]. it  reverses the traditional balance of power, in the sense that states are  not trying to counter-balance it  but join it.

It is  argued by commentators that full political integration is  not required for the European Union to wield international influence: that its apparent weaknesses constitute its real strengths (as of its low profile diplomacy and  the opsetion of the rule of law^[17]) and  that the EU represents a new and  potentially more  successful type of international actor than traditional ones[6]; however, it  is uncertain if the effectiveness of such an  influence would be equal to that of a politically integrated superpower. (e.g. United States)

Much of the debate seems to stem from the EU being a sui generis entity.

[edit] Structure of the EU

On December 16, 2004, The World Factbook, a publication of the United States' Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) added an  entry for the European Union.^[18] According to the CIA, the European Union was added because the EU "continues to accrue more  nation-like characteristics for itself". Their reasoning was explained in this small statement in the introduction:

The evolution of the European Union (EU) from a regional economic agreement among six neighboring states in 1951 to today's supranational organization of 25 countries across the European continent stands as an  unprecedented phenomenon in the annals of history. Dynastic unions for territorial consolidation were long the norm in Europe... Although the EU is  not a federation in the strict sense, it  is far more  than a free-trade association such as ASEAN, NAFTA, or  Mercosur, and  it has many of the attributes associated with independent nations: its own flag, anthem, founding date, and  currency, as well as an  incipient common foreign and  security policy in its dealings with other nations. In the future, many of these nation-like characteristics are  likely to be expanded. Thus, inclusion of basic intelligence on the EU has been deemed appropriate as a new, separate entity in The World Factbook. However... this description is  placed after the regular country entries. — CIA factbook[18]

[edit] Emerging superpowers

Main article: Emerging superpowers

██ Republic of China██ Republic of India██ European Union

[edit] People's Republic of China

Main article:  an  emerging superpower">China as an  emerging superpower

The People's Republic of China is  often considered an  emerging superpower ^[19]. Excluding economic data from Hong Kong, Taiwan, and  Macau, mainland China is  currently the world's second largest economy in terms of real GDP (PPP) and  the fourth largest economy in terms of nominal GDP (market exchange rates) and  is considered an  emerging superpower due to its large population and  extremely rapid economic expansion with an  annual growth rate of 9.9%. ^[20] With the world's largest armed forces, China is  one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.

[edit] Republic of India

Main article:  an  emerging superpower">India as an  emerging superpower

The Republic of India is  currently the world's fourth largest economy in terms of real GDP (PPP) and  the tenth largest economy in terms of nominal GDP (market exchange rates), with an  annual growth rate of 9.2% ^[21]. it  is considered as a possible future superpower because of its growing industries and  skilled workforce (in the service sector especially in IT industry and  increasingly other hi-tech sectors like chemical, bio-tech, and  pharmaceutical industries), a young population, and  the second fastest growing major economy after China^[22][23]. it  maintains world's third largest military, with the world's fourth largest air force and  the fifth largest naval force which has "blue water" capabilities.^[24] it  also has a budding space program. With India's democratic institutions, it  is seen by some as a stable long term growth story.^[25]

[edit] See also

• Energy superpower

[ and  sources">edit] References and  sources

Asia

• China, India Superpower? Not so Fast!

USA

• New study compares GDP and  growth: EU versus USA

Books

• Todd, Emmanuel (200X). After the Empire — The Breakdown of the American Order.
• Kennedy, Paul (1988).  and  Fall of the Great Powers">The Rise and  Fall of the Great Powers. ISBN 0-679-72019-7.
• Belt, Don (2004). “Europe's Big Gamble”, National Geographic, 54-65.
• Brzezinski, Zbigniew (1997). The Grand Chessboard: American Primacy and  Its Geostrategic Imperatives. New York: Basic Books. ISBN 0-465-02726-1.
• John McCormick The European Superpower (Palgave Macmillan, 2007).