
Fox, an American foreign policy professor, elaborated on the concept in the book The Superpowers: The United States, Britain and the Soviet Union - Their Responsibility for Peace which spoke of the global reach of a super-empowered nation. This formed the foundation for the book The Geography of the Peace, which referred primarily to the unmatched maritime global supremacy of the British Empire and the United States as essential for peace and prosperity in the world.Ī year later, in 1944, William T.
SUPERPOWERED WIKIA SERIES
The term in its current political meaning was coined by Dutch-American geostrategist Nicholas Spykman in a series of lectures in 1943 about the potential shape of a new post-war world order. This was because the United States and the Soviet Union had proved themselves to be capable of casting great influence in global politics and military dominance.

The term was first used to describe nations with greater than great power status as early as 1944, but only gained its specific meaning with regard to the United States and the Soviet Union after World War II. However, a fundamental characteristic that is consistent with all definitions of a superpower is a nation or state that has mastered the seven dimensions of state power, namely geography, population, economy, resources, military, diplomacy, and national identity. No agreed definition of what is a superpower exists and may differ between sources. Terminology and origin Ĭountries with the military bases and facilities of the present sole superpower – the United States Since the late 2010s and into the 2020s, China has been described as an emerging superpower. At the end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the United States became the world's sole superpower and a hyperpower. During the Cold War, the British Empire dissolved, leaving the United States and the Soviet Union to dominate world affairs. In 1944, during World War II, the term was first applied to the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union. While a great power state is capable of exerting its influence globally, superpowers are states so influential that no significant action can be taken by the global community without first considering the positions of the superpowers on the issue. Traditionally, superpowers are preeminent among the great powers.

This is done through the combined means of economic, military, technological, political, and cultural strength as well as diplomatic and soft power influence. Superpower describes a state or supranational union that holds a dominant position characterized by the ability to exert influence or project power on a global scale. For other uses, see Superpower (disambiguation). For the fictional superhuman abilities, see Superpower (ability). This article is about the geographic and political term.
