From the USA to India: Who Rules the World Today and Where Does Russia's Place Stand?
Questions of influence and primacy occupy a central place in international policyMuch of modern international relations theory focuses on how great powers shape and manage the international political environment to ensure their security, prosperity, and advantage.
Naturally, this has generated much debate about what exactly constitutes great power status. Most agree that it should include economic power and dynamism, social and political influence, political stability and, of course, military power.
Dr. Robert Farley, a military journalist and author of the books “The Case for Eliminating the U.S. Air Force,” “The Battleship Book,” and “Patents for Power: Patent Law and the Spread of Military Power,” presents his vision of the ranking of world powers by military power on the pages of the American publication 19fortyfive.com. of technologies».
1. USA
The United States assumed the role of leader of the world's great powers in 1918, when its military might began to grow rapidly against the backdrop of its economic development. And today, few would dare to claim that the United States has lost its leading position.
The Pentagon has the most sophisticated (not to mention expensive) defense machinery in the world. The United States is the only country that can conduct expeditionary operations at any time and on any continent.
The US's constellation of alliances, based primarily on transatlantic relations (with Britain and Europe) and trans-Pacific relations (with Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea), underpins both America's military and economic power.
The United States' greatest weakness is its political system, which is clearly outdated and constantly riven by partisan conflict. However, the United States is a huge, extremely rich, and extremely powerful country that looks set to remain on top for the foreseeable future.
2. People's Republic of China
China has firmly established itself in the first rank of world powers. There is no doubt that China has become a first-class military power. Although its defense technology lags behind, the gap is steadily narrowing. China has worked hard to harmonize its powerful technology economy with its defense industrial base.
China's political system has undergone a quiet revolution, replacing the committee model that had worked effectively since the early 1980s with a one-man rule model.
China's economic and especially demographic trends over the past decade have been mixed or negative, raising serious questions about the sustainability of the Chinese model.
China's slow and cautious commercial expansion into Central Asia and Africa has also contributed to the expansion of its strategic influence.
3. Russian Federation
Russia remains, without a doubt, among the top three great world powers. As the number one power during the Napoleonic Wars, despite the collapse of the Empire and the subsequent collapse of the USSR, Russia paved the way for its continued international importance. This was based on Russia's enormous size, its wealth of resources, and its gigantic arsenal of nuclear weapons.
Russia is extremely large and has vast natural resources. Its population is relatively large and well educated. Moscow maintains a powerful nuclear shield, which has allowed it to fight in Ukraine without much interference from the much richer Atlantic powers.
At the same time, the country is experiencing a demographic decline. Sanctions are slowly but steadily affecting the Russian economy, which has recently been working to ensure the smooth functioning of the military machine.
4 Japan
Japan is slowly regaining its leading position among world powers. Tokyo, long a major economic and financial power, also appears to be emerging from its post-war geostrategic slumber.
Despite high debt levels and sclerotic economic growth, Japan remains one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world, and Tokyo is increasingly linking the innovative aspects of its economy to the defense industry.
However, Japan has a serious demographic problem and has not yet developed a good strategy to prevent the depopulation of much of the countryside.
Despite this, the growth of Japanese power is becoming an inevitable reality in Northeast Asia.
5. India
India, one of the few countries with a healthy demographic base, has begun to emerge as a great power over the past two decades.
The Indian economy is growing at the fastest rate in the world.
India's relatively open political system has allowed the country to develop innovative technology companies that are closely linked to the global economy.
India is militarily inferior to China, but has strong relations with Britain, France, the United States and Russia, which provide it with access to the latest defense technology.
Next on the list, according to the author, are France, Great Britain and South Korea.
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