Can the US maintain its status as the world’s sole superpower?

• Introduction – historical factors that helped America become a superpower.

• Historical (post world war II period), economical (wall street crash), military, cultural(soft
power, the Paradox... p.8-9) factors

• Foreign policy

• “today’s international system is built not around a balance of power but around
American hegemony”

• America on news

• America’s relations to other countries

• Other superpowers – Russia and China

• USA on its own? Power is not enough to solve global problems – terrorism, environmental
degradation and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction – without involving other
nations

• September 11,

• For most of today’s great powers, the use of force would jeopardize their economic
objectives.

• We became complacent during 1990s

• After the collapse of Soviet Union no country could match or balance us.

• We had unsurpassed global military, economic and cultural power

• The Gulf War at the beginning of the decade was an easy victory; and at the end of
the decade, we bombed Serbia without suffering a single casualty.

• The economy grew and the stock market boomed.

• We resembled Britain in its mid-Victorian glory, but with even greater global reach.

• Polls showed that American public focused on domestic affairs and paying little
attention to the rest of the world.

• Between 1989 and 2000, the television networks closed foreign bureaus and cut
their foreign news content by two thirds.

• The president of MSNBC blames “a national fog of materialism and disinterest and
avoidance”.
• All this changed on September 11. The direction of the change, if not the timing,
could have been foreseen. As president’s Bush father said after the September
tragedy, “just as a Pearl Harbor awakened this country from the notion that we could
somehow avoid the call of duty and defend freedom in Europe and Asia in World
War II, so, too, should this most recent surprise attack erase the concept in some
quarters that America can somehow go it alone in the fight against terrorism or in
anything else for that matter.”10.

• America’s military superiority would not protect us from hostile attacks on our
homeland: “Americans will likely die on American soil, possibly in large numbers” –
unlikely to mount an adequate defence until we suffer an attack.

• American attitudes and policies are not keeping peace.

• Americans are still wrestling with how best to combine our power and our values
while reducing our vulnerabilities.

• Moreover, American popular culture has a global reach regardless of what we do.
There is no escaping the influence of Hollywood, CNN and the Internet, America films
and television express freedom, individualism, and change (as well as sex and
violence).

• The global reach of American culture helps to enhance our soft power – our cultural
and ideological appeal.

• The United States has been compared to the Roman Empire, but even Rome
eventually collapsed – power has its perils.

• Throughout history, coalitions of countries have arisen to balance dominant powers,

and the search for new state challengers is well under way. Some see China as a new
enemy; others envisage a Russia-China-India coalition as the threat. Still others see a
uniting Europe becoming a nation – state that will challenge us for primacy.

• soft power is crucial, but alon it is not sufficient. both hard and soft power will be
necessary for successfull foreign policy in a global information age. our leader must
make sure that they exrecise our hard power in a manner that does not undercut our
soft power. (the paradox of american superpower, p.141)

• US is likely to remain the most powerful country well into this century, and this gives
us an interest in maintaining the degree of international order. (p.142)

• future of american power : as Secretary of State Colin Powell has pleaded to

Congress, we need to put more resources into the State Department, including its
information services and the Agency for International Development (AID), if we are
going to get our messages across. A bipartisan report on the situation of the State
Department recently warned that "if the 'downward spiral' is not reversed, the
prospect of relying on military force to protect US national interest will increase
because Washington will be less capable of avoiding, managing or resolving crises
 through the use of statecraft. Morover, the abolition of the United States
Information Agency as a separate entity and its absorption into the State
Department reduced the effectiveness of one of our government's important
instruments of soft power. It is difficult to be a superpower on the cheap - or through
military power alone. In addition to better means we need strategy for their use. Our
grand startegy must first ensure our survival, but then it must focus on providing
global public goods. The United States can learn from the lesson of Great Britain in
the nineteeth century, when it was alos a preponderant taining the balance of ower
among the major states in Europe, promoting an opern international system, and
maintaining open international commons such as the(p.143)

• The American role as a stabilizer and reassurance against aggression by aspiring

hegemons in the key regions, as some have recently suggested, though our presence
in the Gulf could be handled more subtly. (p.144)

• Promoting an open international economic system is good for American economic

growth and is good for other countries as well. Openness of global markets is a
necessary condition for alleviating poverty in poor countries even as it benefits
United States. (p.144)

• the United States should help develop and maintain international regimes of laws
and institutions that organize international action in various domains - not just trade
and environment, but weapons proliferation, peacekeeping, human rights, terrorism,
and other concerns. (p.145)

• four axes of power: military, economic, political and cultural.

In a modern world there are hundreds of different countries all over the world which differ
one to another on different aspects. Some are poor, some are rich, others are powerful and some are
not, they come in all types. However, there are some countries that are able to maintain their status
of great empires throughout the decades. In ancient times the great power of the world was the
Roman Empire. The most powerful in its economic and military features, very rich and territorially
the biggest one, was in charge of the half of European continent, some regions of Africa and Asia.
The contemporary empire is the United States of America. Why is it an empire? Because according
to the definition ... The country has a choice either to be world’s leader and maximise its interactions
with the world or to reduce its involvement and become more isolationist. And all of this is due to
the fact that by almost any measure – economic, ideological, and military – it leads the world.

In the modern world countries fight to be the superpower of the world, to rule the world and
be its the mightiest empire. As it was thousands years ago that the Roman Empire was ruling the
world, nowadays we have modern empire, The United States of America. According to the definition
‘an empire is a state that surpasses all others in capabilities and sense of mission [...] its capabilities
are much greater than the average or norm prevailing in the international system.’ There is many
different factors that could confirm such a thesis. US’s economic, military and cultural power is
enormous comparing it to other countries and at the moment there is no doubt that this country has
the title of superpower. However, there is a lot of changes going on in today’s modern world and
there are new difficulties, such as terrorism or proliferation of weapons of mass destruction that
even the greatest country in the world could not fight with on its own. What have made US to
become a superpower, when did it start and what different aspects let it still be the country that
leads the world’s economy and culture?

Power gives ability to effect outcomes that are desired and there are some elements that
could make it easier such as population, territory, natural resources, economic strength, military
force and political stability. These factors could estimate of relative power, however over centuries
the sources of power have changed. In seventeenth- and eighteenth- century Europe, population was
a critical power resource as it provided a base for taxes and the recruitment of infantry and it gave an
edge to France. After that in nineteenth century, the growing importance of industry benefited first
Britain, which had a great navy with no peer, and later Germany, who used railways for quick
transport of their armies. The twentieth century, described as nuclear age, gave opportunity to US
and Russia to become industrial might with nuclear arsenals and intercontinental missiles.

The history of United States of America is very long and fascinating and in many ways proves
the strength and competitiveness of the country throughout the decades. It was discovered by
Christopher Columbus and found itself under many different colonization (e.g. Spanish, French,
British). In 1776 it proclaimed its independence, "the United States was the first major colony
successfully to revolt against colonial rule. In this sense, it was the first 'new nation'." The hardest
time in the history of United States was the period of Civil War which despite being called the
bloodiest war in American history gave basics for today’s superpower. It ended slavery, restored the
Union and strengthened the role of the federal government that could harness and organize the
great resources of the country efficiently. By joining the World War I in 1917 US showed its military
power by helping the Allies. Consequently, after World War II USA had military and geopolitical
necessary means as well as "the vision to consolidate a postwar order that shaped the key
institutions of global governance to advance its purpose. The international regime has guaranteed
American dominance and conferred the legitimacy of multilateralism to a global order that advances
America's state power at the expense of all other states." (globalization and state power,p.127)

The final achievement of USA in favor of confirmation of its superpower was the period of
Cold War. "The United States were left standing as the "sole remaining superpower" in the
international system. With no actual or potential geopolitical - or - ideological rivals in sight, America
enjoyed an historically unprecedented dominance in international politics." (American Empire, p.55)
Here arises a question of unipolar and multipolar world. For American politics the prospect of
unipolar world is the best possibility and it provides reliable defense of peace and international
order. The bipolar or multipolar world could put on danger security and is described by Christopher
Layne as "not only inherently fluid and unpredictable but also unstable and bloody" (American
Empire, p.56). For that reason, maintaining the position of superpower seems to be very important in
US policy. In a post-Cold War period the fear of raising multiple military powers was even expressed
by Bush I administration and then repeated by Bush II administration in words that US needs to
prevent any competitor from surpassing or even equaling the power of the United States.

In answering the question if the US is able to maintain its status as a sole superpower, we
should think about different aspects of its success. Firstly, one of the very important factor is its
economy. The products of US are known all over the world, they trade, buy and sell items, produce
and import them from other countries. Economy gives ways of freedom, opportunity, global growth
and development. In the book 'Incoherent Empire' Michael Mann argues that despite US economy
being 'the main engine of global growth'(p.49) it is only because of a massive consumption of its
citizens rather than to leadership in productive industries. However, it is not only trading that gives
US the status of superpower. Realizing the amount of money they spend on different things abroad,
such as providing other countries with military weapons, wars agianst terrorism or any other aid. It is
surprising that the money does not go to the poorest countries but to the wealthiest ones, such as
Israel or Egypt. The last one is basically paid not to attack Israel, the same as is Jordan. At this point
the case of Israel is very important. It has been US the most important ally in the middle east since
years. "In fact strategic rather than developmental needs dominate most aid."(p.54) This shows how
USA can manipulate other countries and by providing them with a satisfactionary amount of money
(bribing) gain their aim. They follow the rule of strategy, pay countries in order to stop them
interferring in their own business. The spend only 10 precent of economic aid for the poorest regions
in the world. The background behind the aid to the countries is that all of them, apart from Israel, are
obliged to purchase US goods,arms and provide an account of the spending money. "Empires reward
strategic allies, not the world at large"(p.55)

Despite that US does not seem to be very generous, comparing to other European countries,
e.g. Netherlands, Norway , Sweden or Denmark, to any other countries, such as poor African
countries which really needs financial support. However, the US Treasury (in brief, the association
that “Serve the American people and strengthen national security by managing the U.S.
Government's finances effectively”)i is in control of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.
Basically this means that the US Treasury is the world’s creditor bank and if the organization refuses
the loan, any other lending organization will refuse it as well. This kind of situation presses neo –
liberal terms (cutting government spending, raising taxes, currency stabilization, removing
governments control) for debt repayment and the primary purpose is not economic development but
to get the debs repaid. (Incoherent, p.63) This shows an amazing power of USA in controlling the
funds of practically all the world. They can decide whether the institution from the developing
country will be given the loan and then make their own way in getting the money back from that
institution. In the reality, the consequences for the poor countries are damaging, e.g. increase of
unemployment and wider gaps between rich and poor countries. “For the moment, the US can
finance substantial imperial activity. It does so carefully, spending billions on its strategic allies,
however unworthy and oppressive they may be.”(incoherent, p.74)
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