There is an end of the post-cold war world order predicted by social scientists and economists by 2030. An unexpected turn from globalisation to getting back to nation states is emerging as a pattern across the globe. USA reached its peak a couple of decades ago and has been approximately stagnant since. China on the other hand has emerged as a new economic and social player with hegemony over East Asia and increasing share of power throughout the world.
The Soviet Union’s collapse transformed the world order from a bipolar to a unipolar system. It was in the 1990s when people started doubting the sustenance of US’ dominance and started calling it a unipolar moment that lasted a few years. United States of America losing its power stature has been a widely debated issue since the late 1990s. There is a lot more to what will happen to the world order if America loses its power. The systems put in place after the World War 2 that have created a stable international order will undergo changes and to what extent is improbable as more and more countries are now adopting a more inwards looking, intrinsic approach than the outward looking globalisation one.
Considering the unstoppable rise of China as a leader in comparison to USA, the Cold War over, the underlying differences between China and the United States have been reaffirmed in areas such as human rights, trade and weapons proliferation. It is unlikely for the differences to be moderate. A ‘new cold war’, reportedly claimed Deng Xaioping in 1991, is gradually emerging between China and North America.
Academicians and scholars have extensively written about how USA can successfully manage the decline, how it can extend the dominance with new strategies or a few that believe USA will definitely hold the global bastion. Their have been critics as mentioned above that believe America will soon be surpassed by emerging power or be a victim of its own capabilities. The policies and outlook of state leaders especially in countries like Russia, China and India alongwith USA that will determine this change.
The American dream, not just for their citizens but across the globe is now on a shaky pedestal. The entry of yet another populist leader, Donald Trump and his ‘new age’ policy of bringing America back to its position by focusing mainly on intrinsic issues has given negative consequences aiding the rise of an alternate power which in this case is China. America’s power can be assessed by what the Americans feel. A poll conducted by Gallup amongst the voters in America says that 50 percent participants believe China has already surpassed USA as an economic power. Another poll conducted by Rasmussen reports concluded with 59 percent respondents believing that America is on a wrong track right now.
During his presidential campaign Donald Trump emphasised on making ‘America Great Again’, which formed a cloud of something wrong with America around peoples’ eyes worldwide. The last 15 years have shown America losing its battles; starting from the dotcom bubble burst, an attack on the twin towers, the Lehman Brother collapse in 2008, lost wars in Afghanistan and Middle East plus the expense that came out of it (which the citizens are not fully aware of). Another aspect that will be discussed is Dollar being the global reserve currency and what economic crash it will bring if it goes down or is replaced.
China’s increasing its influence over East Asia, economic corridors in the areas of global importance, revised deals with oil producing nations, near neo-colonisation in the prominent countries of the Indian Ocean and the infamous South China Sea tensions. China has been suggesting the world its model of governance for developing economies for an year which has mostly received positive feedback. It has an emphasis on promoting its own language and currency in international deals that suggest an alternative appearing to the nations. What was supposed to be the American Century now possess a grave threat i.e. China.