Geopolitical Power (Edexcel A Level Geography)

Definition of Superpowers

• A superpower is a nation which is able to project its influence and be dominant on a global scale 

• The patterns of power across the world change over time

  • Uni-polar world means there is only one superpower

  • Bi-polar world exists when there are two superpowers

  • Multi-polar world means there are multiple superpowers

• The USA and USSR became superpowers after World War II. Before this, the superpowers were the British Empire and the USA

• Currently the USA is the only superpower therefore the world is uni-polar

• The USA is also referred to as a hyperpower or hegemon meaning that it is dominant in all aspects of power

Emerging superpowers

• The EU is a group of nations which qualifies as an emerging superpower

• There are a number of nations which are regarded as emerging superpowers including the BRIC nations:

  • Brazil

  • Russia

  • India

  • China

Regional powers 

• These are nations which exert power and influence over other countries in the region including:

  • South Africa in Africa

  • France, Germany and the UK in Europe

Factors affecting superpower status

• There are a number of factors which affect whether a nation has superpower status

• Several of the factors are listed below but there are many characteristics within these and they are all linked 

Resources 

• Access to resources such as minerals and metals 

• Control of resources

• These can be sold and exported which supports economic growth

  • Discovery of oil and gas in the Middle East has given OPEC countries economic power

Size and geographical position

• This links to resources, the larger a country the more resources it may have

  • Russia has significant reserves of coal, oil and gas

• The geographical position of a country impacts its links and influence over other countries

Economic factors

• The economic status of a country is what many of the other factors are based on as it influences areas such as 

  • Military strength

  • Ability to exploit resources

  • Cultural influence

  • Political strength

• Economic strength is measured in terms of

  • Gross Domestic Product (GDP)
    

    • US GDP per capita in 2022 is US$68,615 compared to China US$21,804

  • High levels of international trade

  • The currency is used as a reserve currency and is regarded as 'safe' for investment

    • Over 60% of international trade transactions are in US$

  • Influence on global economics through membership of International Governmental Organisations (IGOs) and trading blocs such as European Union (EU)

  • High levels of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)

    • The USA has the highest global inflow of FDI at US$86 billion

Demographic factors

• The size and structure of the population

• Large populations provide a large workforce which can support economic growth

  • China and India's large populations have been key to their economic growth

  • Large diaspora and more workers in large companies increases the country's influence around the world

• Populations with a large working age population supports economic growth

• A large dependent population (e.g. ageing population of Japan) may have a negative impact on economic growth

• Population size also impacts on the military strength of a country

Political power

• A country's ability to affect the decisions of other countries, this could be:

  • As part of international organisations

  • Through negotiations between different country's politicians and heads of state

• This can be the result of economic (e.g OPEC countries) or military power which gives countries more influence over other countries

• Superpowers and emerging superpowers have key roles in international organisations such as NATO, UN, The World Bank and IMF

  • Some organisations have weighted votes so some countries have more votes than others

Military strength

• The reach of a country's military is key to the level of power they have:

  • A global reach means that the military can be used to achieve geopolitical goals

• The size and power of the military is dependent on a number of factors:

  • The size and age of the population to maintain the size of the military

  • Defence spending on the military - personnel, technology and weapons

• Superpowers and emerging powers have:

  • Large military forces

  • Nuclear weapons

  • Export arms 

  • Influential roles in international military organisations such as NATO 

Cultural influence

• The ability of a country to influence the beliefs, values, customs, lifestyle and ideologies of other countries

• Influence can be achieved through:

  • The media - films, tv, music, radio, internet, art

  • Transnational companies introducing foods

  • Migrant populations who bring food, dress, religious beliefs, music 

Maintenance of Power

• Maintenance of power is achieved utilising hard and soft powers

  • These sit on a spectrum, meaning that the methods are somewhere on a scale between two extremes

The Spectrum of Hard and Soft Powers

Hard powers

• Use economic and military power to try and force countries to behave in a certain way. These include:

  • Economic - trade deals, sanctions 

    • Sanctions have been imposed on Russia to try and deter them from their invasion of Ukraine

    • US sanctions imposed on Iran in an attempt to stop the development of nuclear weapons, the sanctions have caused the cost of living to increase and inflation rates to reach 50%

  • Military - use of force, threats of force or military action, the forming of military alliances

    • The invasion of Iraq in 1991 in response to the invasion of Kuwait  

    • The invasion of Afghanistan in 2001 following the bombing of the Twin Towers in the USA

Soft powers

• Use political and cultural influence to try and persuade countries to behave in a certain way: These include:

  • Political (diplomacy) - use of persuasion through ambassadors, high ranking politicians, heads of state 

  • Cultural - makes policies and way of life attractive and appealing, promotes the beliefs and ideologies of the superpower(s)

Top Ten Global Soft Powers

• The UK has consistently ranked as one of the top soft power nations in the world, (in 2022 ranking 2nd) this is due to:

  • Diplomacy

    • The UK has 281 diplomatic posts in 178 countries and territories

    • Relationships have been built over many years through the existence of the Commonwealth and the former countries of the British Empire

    • The popularity of the royal family and their role in diplomacy and maintaining international relations

  • Culture - British culture is world renown including:

    • British literature - Shakespeare, Dickens, Austen 

    • Music - Elgar through the Beatles to Adele,

    • Art - from Constable to Barbara Hepworth

    • The BBC is one of the world's most trusted broadcasters

    • Television - Downtown Abbey and The Crown have worldwide popularity (73 million people watched The Crown and Downtown Abbey is viewed in 250 countries)

    • Over 500,000 overseas students study in the UK each year - 1 in 4 countries around the world have a head of state or government who was educated in the UK

    • The British Council reaches over 100 million people in 100 countries

Smart power

• In 2003 Joesph Nye used the term 'Smart power' to demonstrate that effective foreign policy and maintenance of power needs the use of both hard and soft powers 

Importance of Mechanisms for Maintaining Power

• Over time the importance of the mechanisms for maintaining power have changed

• The overall shift has been from the use of hard power to the use of soft power

• Historically military force and power were frequently used to gain and maintain power over other nations

• Power was strongly linked to military dominance.

Mackinder's 'Heartland Theory'

• In 1904 Halford Mackinder proposed the 'Heartland theory'

• Based on the premise that most of the world's natural resources are to be found in Asia and Europe 

• The 'heartland' is an area bordered by mountains on three sides and the Arctic to the north 

  • This makes it difficult to invade

• The 'heartland' is surrounded by the inner crescent area which includes China, India and the rest of Europe

• Mackinder argued that the nation controlling the heartland would gain control over the rest of the world

• This influenced world policy as the USA and many European countries believed that Russia needed to be controlled to prevent it achieving dominance

• Mackinder stated that the position of the 'heartland' could change

• There have been a number of changes over the last 150 years

• The theory is based on geo-locational importance

• Geo-locational importance has declined as technology and transportation have increased