7.5B Alliances
Alliances, both military (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), The Australia, New Zealand and United States Security Treaty (ANZUS) and economic (EU, North American free trade agreement (NAFTA), ASEAN) and environmental (IPCC) increase interdependence and are important to geostrategy and global influence.
Even hyperpowers such as the USA, or Britain in the Imperial era, seek allies. Having like-minded friends adds to a superpower's strength.
- Allies can be 'eyes and ears' in distant parts of the world, spotting trouble as it develops
- Allies increase the network of military assets spread around the world
- Political and economic allies can form a large bloc, to force their agenda on the wider world.
Military Alliances
The USA has a broad global military alliance, which its emerging power challengers (China, India, Russia) cannot match. Military alliances are treaties that usually involve mutual defence. These alliances allow the USA to position powerful air and naval assets around the world.
Examples:
Examples:
- NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation) - Canada, European countries, Turkey
- 14 air force bases
- USA's 6th fleet is located in Italy
- Strategic Co-operation agreement with Israel
- USA's 5th fleet is located in Bahrain
- ANZUS - with Australia and New Zealand
- Mutual Defence Treaty with the Philippines
- Taiwan relations act (with Taiwan)
- Military alliance with South Korea
- 2 air force bases
- Security alliance with Japan
- 3 air force bases
- USA's 7th fleet located in Japan
The USA and its military allies spent $966 billion on their militaries in 2015, or 58% of global military spending.
Economic Alliances
As well as being tied together economically, superpowers are tied by economic alliances. This is achieved by free-trade agreements, which allow for tax, tariff and quota-free trade between member countries in goods and/or services.
These include:
The overlap between economic and military alliances creates interdependence in terms of geostrategy. Economic prosperity requires geopolitical stability (wars are bad for trade), which is ensured by military alliances.
Most of the world's powerful inter-governmental organisations (IGOs) such as the United Nations, WTO and EU were set up by Western countries in the 1940s and 50s. Their actions frequently reflect Western attitudes to trade, capitalism, political freedom and the environment. They may not reflect the attitudes of emerging powers such as China or Russia.
These include:
- The EU, between 28 member states
- NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement), between the USA, Mexico and Canada
- ASEAN, between 10 south-east Asian countries including Taiwan, the Philippines and Indonesia
The overlap between economic and military alliances creates interdependence in terms of geostrategy. Economic prosperity requires geopolitical stability (wars are bad for trade), which is ensured by military alliances.
Most of the world's powerful inter-governmental organisations (IGOs) such as the United Nations, WTO and EU were set up by Western countries in the 1940s and 50s. Their actions frequently reflect Western attitudes to trade, capitalism, political freedom and the environment. They may not reflect the attitudes of emerging powers such as China or Russia.