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((Short description|List of great powers from the early modern period to the post cold war era))

((More citations needed|date=February 2023))
((Use dmy dates|date=October 2022))

[[File:United Nations Security Council.jpg|thumb|Great powers are often recognized in an international structure such as the [[United Nations Security Council]].]]
A [[great power]] is a [[nation]] or [[State (polity)|state]] that, through its [[economic]], [[politics|political]] and [[military]] strength, is able to exert [[Power (international relations)|power]] and [[Sphere of influence|influence]] not only over its own [[Regional power|region]] of the world, but beyond to others.

In a modern context, recognized great powers first arose in [[Europe]] during the post-[[Napoleonic Wars|Napoleonic]] era.<ref name="British Diplomacy 1813–1815">Webster, Charles K, Sir (ed), British Diplomacy 1813–1815: Selected Documents Dealing with the Reconciliation of Europe, G Bell (1931), p307.</ref> The formalization of the division between [[small powers]]<ref>Toje, A. (2010). The European Union as a small power: After the post-Cold War. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.</ref> and great powers came about with the signing of the [[Treaty of Chaumont]] in 1814.

The historical terms "Great Nation", a distinguished aggregate of people inhabiting a particular country or territory, and "Great Empire",<ref>Harrison, T., & J. Paul Getty Museum. (2009). The great empires of the ancient world. Los Angeles, Calif: J. Paul Getty Museum.</ref> a considerable group of states or countries under a single supreme authority, are [[colloquial]]; their use is seen in ordinary historical conversations.<ref>Yonge, C. M. (1882). A pictorial history of the world's great nations: From the earliest dates to the present time. New York: S. Hess.</ref><ref>In Powell, T. (1888). Illustrated home book of the world's great nations: Being a geographical, historical and pictorial encyclopedia. Chicago: People's Pub. Co.</ref><ref>Edward Sylvester Ellis, Charles F. Horne (1906). The story of the greatest nations: from the dawn of history to the twentieth century : a comprehensive history founded upon the leading authorities, including a complete chronology of the world and a pronouncing vocabulary of each nation, Volume 1. F. R. Niglutsch.</ref>

((TOC limit|limit=4))

== Early modern powers ==
=== France (1534–1792, 1792–1804, 1804–1815) ===
[[File:EmpireFrench.png|thumb|The first (light blue) and second (dark blue) [[French colonial empire]]s]]

France was a dominant empire possessing many [[colonies]] in various locations around the world. Still participating in his [[Italian Wars|deadly Italian conflicts]], [[Francis I of France]] managed to finance expeditions to find [[trade routes]] to [[Ming Dynasty|China]] or [[Cathay]] through landmass [[Voyages of Christopher Columbus|already discovered by the Spanish]] under [[Giovanni da Verrazzano]]. Giovanni would lead the first French discovery of the "[[New World]]" just north of the [[Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire|Spanish invasions of Mesoamerica]] later as ''[[New Spain]]'' and a decade later [[Jacques Cartier]] would firmly colonize the landmass in the name of Francis I. This New World colony would become ''[[New France]]'', the first colony of the [[Kingdom of France]]. During the reign of [[Louis XIV|Louis XIV, Sun King]], from 1643 to 1715, France was the leading European power as Europe's most populous, richest and powerful country. The [[First French Empire|Empire of the French]] (1804–1814), also known as the [[Greater French Empire]] or [[First French Empire]], but more commonly known as the [[Napoleonic Empire]], was also the dominant power of much of continental Europe and, it ruled over 90 million people and was the sole power in Europe if not the world as [[United Kingdom|Britain]] was the only main rival during the early 19th century. From the 16th to the 17th centuries, the first [[French colonial empire]] stretched from a total area at its peak in 1680 to over ((convert|10|e6km2|e6sqmi|abbr=unit)), the second largest empire in the world at the time behind only the [[Spanish Empire]]. It had many possessions around the world, mainly in the [[Americas]], [[Asia]] and [[Africa]]. At its peak in 1750, French India had an area of ((convert|1.5|e6km2|e6sqmi|abbr=unit)) and a totaled population of 100 million people and was the most populous colony under [[French India|French rule]].<ref>((cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Western-colonialism|title =Western colonialism – European expansion since 1763|website= Encyclopedia Britannica |access-date=2021-08-20))</ref>

Napoleon became [[Emperor of the French]] (((lang-fr|L'Empereur des Français))) on 18 May 1804 and crowned Emperor 2 December 1804, ending the period of the [[French Consulate]], and won early military victories in the [[War of the Third Coalition]] against Austria, Prussia, Russia, Portugal, and allied nations, notably at the [[Battle of Austerlitz]] (1805) and the [[Battle of Friedland]] (1807). The [[Treaty of Tilsit]] in July 1807 ended two years of bloodshed on the European continent. Subsequent years of military victories known collectively as the Napoleonic Wars extended French influence over much of Western Europe and into Poland. At its height in 1812, the French Empire had 130 ''départements'', ruled over 90 million subjects, maintained extensive military presence in Germany, Italy, Spain, and the Duchy of Warsaw, and could count Prussia, Russia and Austria as nominal allies.<ref>((Cite journal | last=Rein Taagepera | author-link=Rein Taagepera | date=September 1997 | title=Expansion and Contraction Patterns of Large Polities: Context for Russia | url=https://escholarship.org/uc/item/3cn68807 | journal=[[International Studies Quarterly]] | volume=41 | issue=3 | page=501 | doi=10.1111/0020-8833.00053 | jstor=2600793 | access-date=2021-08-20))</ref>

Early French victories exported many ideological features of the French Revolution throughout Europe. Napoleon gained support by appealing to some common concerns of the people. In France, these included fear by some of a restoration of the ((lang|fr|[[ancien régime]])), a dislike of the Bourbons and the emigrant nobility who had escaped the country, a suspicion of foreign kings who had tried to reverse the Revolution – and a wish by Jacobins to extend France's revolutionary ideals.

The feudal system was abolished, aristocratic [[Privilege (law)|privileges]] were eliminated in all places except Poland, and the introduction of the [[Napoleonic Code]] throughout the continent increased legal equality, established jury systems, and legalized divorce. Napoleon placed relatives on the thrones of several European countries and granted many titles, most of which expired with the fall of the Empire. Napoleon wished to make an alliance with [[Kingdom of Mysore|South India Mysore]] ruler [[Tipu Sultan]] and provide them French-trained army during the [[Anglo-Mysore Wars]], with the continuous aim of having an eventual open way to attack the [[East India Company|British in India]].<ref>((Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BzMJys65u9wC&pg=PA97|title=The Islamic World in Decline: From the Treaty of Karlowitz to the Disintegration of the Ottoman Empire|first=Martin|last=Sicker|date=20 February 2001|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|via=Google Books|page=97|isbn=9780275968915 ))</ref><ref>Kaushik Roy, ''War, Culture and Society in Early Modern South Asia, 1740–1849'', Routledge, 2011, 77.</ref>

Historians have estimated the death toll from the Napoleonic Wars to be 6.5 million people, or 15% of the French Empire's subjects. The [[War of the Sixth Coalition]], a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Sweden, Spain and a number of [[Confederation of the Rhine|German States]] finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on [[Elba]]. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers joined Russia, Britain, Portugal and the rebels in Spain. With their armies reorganized, they drove Napoleon out of Germany in 1813 and invaded France in 1814, forcing Napoleon to abdicate and thus leading to the restoration of [[House of Bourbon|Bourbon rule]].

=== Spanish Empire (1492–1815) ===
[[File:Spanish Empire Anachronous 0.PNG|thumb|The areas pertaining to the [[Spanish Empire]] at various times over a period exceeding 400 years]]
[[File:Philip II's realms in 1598.png|thumb|The territories that came under the Spanish monarch during the [[Iberian Union]]]]

In the 16th century Spain and Portugal were in the vanguard of European global exploration and colonial expansion and the opening of trade routes across the oceans, with trade flourishing across the Atlantic Ocean between Spain and the Americas and across the Pacific Ocean between Asia-Pacific and Mexico via the Philippines. [[Conquistador]]s toppled the [[Aztec Empire|Aztec]], [[Inca Empire|Inca]], and [[Maya civilization]]s, and laid claim to vast stretches of land in North and South America. For a long time, the Spanish Empire dominated the oceans with its navy and ruled the European battlefield with its infantry, the famous [[tercio]]s. Spain enjoyed a cultural [[Spanish Golden Age|golden age]] in the 16th and 17th centuries as Europe's foremost power.

From 1580 to 1640 the [[Spanish Empire]] and the [[Portuguese Empire]] were conjoined in a [[personal union]] of its [[Philippine Dynasty|Habsburg monarchs]], during the period of the [[Iberian Union]], though the empires continued to be administered separately.

From the middle of the 16th century silver and gold from the American mines increasingly financed the military capability of [[Habsburg Spain]], then the foremost global power, in its long series of European and North African wars. Until the loss of its American colonies in the 19th century, Spain maintained one of the largest empires in the world, even though it suffered fluctuating military and economic fortunes from the 1640s. Confronted by the new experiences, difficulties and suffering created by empire-building, Spanish thinkers formulated some of the first modern thoughts on natural law, sovereignty, international law, war, and economics – they even questioned the legitimacy of imperialism – in related schools of thought referred to collectively as the [[School of Salamanca]].

Constant contention with rival powers caused territorial, commercial, and religious conflict that contributed to the slow decline of Spanish power from the mid-17th century. In the [[Mediterranean]], Spain warred constantly with the Ottoman Empire; on the European continent, [[France]] became comparably strong. Overseas, Spain was initially rivaled by [[Portugal]], and later by the [[England|English]] and [[Netherlands|Dutch]]. In addition, English-, French-, and Dutch-sponsored privateering and piracy, overextension of Spanish military commitments in its territories, increasing government corruption, and economic stagnation caused by military expenditures ultimately contributed to the empire's weakening.

Spain's European empire was finally undone by the [[Peace of Utrecht]] (1713), which stripped Spain of its remaining territories in Italy and the [[Spanish Netherlands|Low Countries]]. Spain's fortunes improved thereafter, but it remained a second-rate power in Continental European politics. However, Spain maintained and enlarged its vast overseas empire until the 19th century, when the shock of the [[Peninsular War]] sparked declarations of independence in Quito (1809), [[Venezuela]] and [[Paraguay]] (1811) and successive revolutions that split away its territories on the mainland (the Spanish Main) of the Americas.

=== Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire (1547–1917) ===
[[File:RussianEmpire1700.png|thumb|The [[Tsardom of Russia]], c. 1700, during the reign of [[Peter the Great]] ]]
The [[Russian Empire]] formed from what was [[Tsardom of Russia]] under [[Peter the Great]]. Emperor [[Peter the Great|Peter I]] (1682–1725) fought numerous wars and expanded an already vast empire into a major European power. He moved the capital from [[Moscow]] to the new model city of [[Saint Petersburg]], which was largely built according to Western design. He led a cultural revolution that replaced some of the traditionalist and medieval social and political mores with a modern, scientific, Western-oriented, and rationalist system. Empress [[Catherine the Great]] (1762–1796) presided over a golden age; she expanded the state by conquest, colonization, and diplomacy, while continuing Peter I's policy of modernization along Western European lines. [[Alexander I of Russia|Emperor Alexander I]] (1801–1825) played a major role in defeating [[Napoleon]]'s ambitions to control Europe, as well as constituting the [[Holy Alliance]] of conservative monarchies. Russia further expanded to the west, south and east, becoming one of the most powerful European empires of the time. Its victories in the [[History of the Russo-Turkish wars|Russo-Turkish Wars]] were checked by defeat in the [[Crimean War]] (1853–1856), which led to a period of reform and intensified [[Russian conquest of Central Asia|expansion in Central Asia]].<ref name=":22">((Cite web|title=The Great Game, 1856–1907: Russo-British Relations in Central and East Asia ((!)) Reviews in History|url=https://reviews.history.ac.uk/review/1611|access-date=8 October 2021|website=reviews.history.ac.uk|language=en))</ref> Following these conquests, Russia's territories spanned across [[Eurasia]], with its western borders ending in eastern [[Poland]], and its eastern borders ending in [[Alaska]]. By the end of the 19th century the area of the empire was about ((convert|22400000|km2|sqmi|sp=us)), or almost ((frac|1|6)) of the Earth's landmass; its only rival in size at the time was the [[British Empire]]. The majority of the population lived in European Russia. More than 100 different [[ethnic group]]s lived in the Russian Empire, with ethnic [[Russians]] composing about 45% of the population.<ref>Martin Gilbert, ''Routledge Atlas of Russian History'' (4th ed. 2007) [https://www.amazon.com/Routledge-Russian-History-Historical-Atlases/dp/0415394848/ excerpt and text search] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525204700/https://www.amazon.com/Routledge-Russian-History-Historical-Atlases/dp/0415394848 |date=25 May 2017 ))</ref> [[Alexander II of Russia|Emperor Alexander II]] (1855–1881) initiated numerous reforms, most dramatically the [[Emancipation reform of 1861|emancipation of all 23 million serfs]] in 1861.

=== Qing dynasty (China) (1636–1912) ===
[[File:Qing Empire circa 1820 EN.svg|thumb|[[Qing dynasty]] in 1820]]

The [[Qing dynasty]] was the last [[Dynasties in Chinese history|ruling dynasty of China]], established in 1636 and collapsed in 1912 (with a brief, abortive [[Manchu Restoration|restoration in 1917]]). It was preceded by the [[Ming dynasty]] and followed by the [[Republic of China (1912–1949)|Republic of China]]. The dynasty was founded by the [[Manchu people|Manchu]] clan [[Aisin Gioro]] in what is today [[Northeast China]] (also known as "[[Manchuria]]"). Starting in 1644, it expanded into [[China proper]] and its surrounding territories. Complete pacification of China proper was accomplished around 1683 under the [[Kangxi Emperor]]. The multiethnic Qing Empire lasted for almost three centuries and assembled the territorial base for modern China. It was the largest Chinese dynasty and in 1790 [[List of largest empires#Empires at their greatest extent|the fourth largest empire]] in world history in terms of territorial size. With a population of [[Population history of China|432 million in 1912]], it was the [[List of countries and dependencies by population|world's most populous country]] at the time. The Qing dynasty also reached its economic peak in 1820, when it became the world's largest economy, and contributing to 30% of world [[Gross domestic product|GDP]].<ref>((cite web | url=http://www.ggdc.net/maddison/other_books/appendix_B.pdf | title=Groningen Growth and Development Centre | date=27 July 2016 ))</ref>

Originally the [[Later Jin (1616–1636)|Later Jin dynasty]], the dynasty changed its official name to "Great Qing", meaning "clear" or "pellucid", in 1636. In 1644, [[Beijing]] was sacked by a coalition of rebel forces led by [[Li Zicheng]], a minor Ming official who later proclaimed the [[Shun dynasty]]. The last Ming emperor, the [[Chongzhen Emperor]], committed suicide when the city fell, marking the official end of the Ming dynasty. Qing forces then allied with Ming general [[Wu Sangui]] and seized control of Beijing and expel Shun forces from the city.<ref>Immanuel C. Y. Hsü, '' The rise of modern China'' (4th ed. 1990) [https://archive.org/details/riseofmodernchin00hs online free to borrow]</ref>
[[File:Ewer, Qing dynasty, Qianlong period, porcelain, Honolulu Museum of Art.JPG|thumb|300px|Examples of the high quality porcelain that was mass-produced during the High Qing era]]
The Qing dynasty reached its [[High Qing era|height]] in the ages of the [[Kangxi Emperor]], [[Yongzheng Emperor]] and the [[Qianlong Emperor]]. The [[Ten Great Campaigns]] and in addition, the conquest of the western territories of the [[Mongolia under Qing rule|Mongols]], [[Tibet under Qing rule|Tibetans]], and [[Xinjiang under Qing rule|Muslims]] under the rule of the Qing were another factor of prosperity. Again, the skillful rule of the era's emperors allowed for this success. Rule through chiefdoms in territories like [[Taiwan under Qing rule|Taiwan]], allowed for the conquered peoples to retain their culture and be ruled by their own people while the Qing Empire still possessed the ultimate control and rule. These such ruling tactics created for little need or reason for rebellion of the conquered.<ref>Hu, Minghui. "High Qing Society" HIS 140B, 31 January 2018, UCSC</ref> Another aspect of Manchu rule under the Qing Empire was rule within modern day China. The [[Yuan dynasty|Mongols' attempt to rule]] may have failed because they attempted to rule from the outside. The High Qing emperors ruled from within, enabling them to obtain and retain stable and efficient control of the state.

A new generation of emperors that combined the strengths of their culture in addition to a level of [[sinicization]] of the conquered cultures in order to combine assimilation and the retaining of their own cultural identity. This was initiated with the Kangxi Emperor who was in power at the initiation of the High Qing. As an emperor he elevated the status of the Qing Empire through his passion for education in combination with his military expertise, and his restructuring of the bureaucracy into that of a cosmopolitan one. His son and successor, the Yongzheng Emperor ruled differently through more harsh and brutal tactics, but was also an efficient and unprecedented level of commitment to the betterment of the empire.<ref>((cite book|last1=Rowe|first1=William|title=China's Last Empire|date=10 September 2012|publisher=The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-674-06624-3|page=66))</ref> The last successful emperor of the High Qing was the Qianlong Emperor who, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, was a well-rounded ruler who created the peak of the High Qing Empire. The unique and unprecedented ruling techniques of these three emperors, and the emphasis on multiculturalism<ref>((cite book|last1=Porter|first1=Jonathan|title=Imperial China 1350–1900|date=4 February 2016|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|isbn=9781442222939))</ref> fostered the productivity and success that is the High Qing era.

A heavy revival of the arts was another characteristic of the High Qing Empire. Through commercialization, items such as [[porcelain]] were mass-produced and used in trade. Also, literature was emphasized as Imperial libraries were erected, and literacy rates of men and women both, rose within the elite class. The significance of education and art in this era is that it created for economic stimulation that would last for a period of over fifty years.<ref>Hu, Minghui. "Settlement and Border Regions". HIS 140B, 9 February 2018. UCSC</ref>
After his death, the dynasty faced changes in the world system, [[Western imperialism in Asia|foreign instrusion]], internal revolts, population growth, economic disruption, official corruption, and the reluctance of [[Confucianism|Confucian]] elites to change their mindsets. With peace and prosperity, the population rose to some 400&nbsp;million, but taxes and government revenues were fixed at a low rate, soon leading to a fiscal crisis.

=== First British Empire (1600–1783) ===
At the end of the 16th century, England and the [[Dutch Empire]] began to challenge the [[Portuguese Empire]]'s monopoly of trade with Asia, forming private joint-stock companies to finance the voyages—the English, later British, [[East India Company]] and the [[Dutch East India Company]], chartered in 1600 and 1602 respectively. The primary aim of these companies was to tap into the lucrative [[spice trade]], an effort focused mainly on two regions: the [[Malay Archipelago|East Indies archipelago]], and an important hub in the trade network, India. There, they competed for trade supremacy with Portugal and with each other.<ref>((harvnb|Lloyd|1996|p=13))</ref> Although England eclipsed the Netherlands as a colonial power, in the short term the Netherlands' more advanced financial system((sfn|Ferguson|2004b|p=19)) and the three [[Anglo-Dutch Wars]] of the 17th century left it with a stronger position in Asia. Hostilities ceased after the [[Glorious Revolution]] of 1688 when the Dutch [[William III of England|William of Orange]] invaded and ascended the English throne, bringing peace between the [[Dutch Republic]] and England. A deal between the two nations left the [[spice trade]] of the [[East Indies]] archipelago to the Netherlands and trade with the [[Textile industry in India|textiles industry of India]] to England, but textiles soon overtook spices in terms of profitability.((sfn|Ferguson|2004b|p=19))

[[File:Colonisation 1754.png|thumb|280px|1754 map, British Empire in Red]]During the 17th and 18th centuries, [[British North America|British colonies]] were created along the east coast of [[North America]]. The southern colonies had a [[plantation economy]], made possible by [[Slavery in the United States|enslavement of Africans]], which produced tobacco and cotton. This cotton was especially important in the development of [[Textile manufacture during the British Industrial Revolution|British textile towns]] and the rise of the world's first [[Industrial Revolution]] in Britain by the end of this period. The northern colonies provided timber, [[Shipbuilding in the American colonies|ships]], [[North American fur trade|furs]], and [[Whaling in the United States|whale oil]] for lamps; allowing work to be done at times of the day without natural light.((Sfnp|Richter|2011|page=330–331))((Sfnp|Richter|2011|page=332–336)) All of these colonies served as important [[captive markets]] for British finished goods and trade goods including British textiles, Indian tea, West Indian coffee, and other items.((Sfnp|Richter|2011|page=329–330))

The First British Empire participated in the [[Seven Years' War]] officially from 1756, a war described by some historians as the world's first [[World war#Other global conflicts|World War]].<ref name="HamiltonHerwig2003">((cite book | editor1 = Richard F. Hamilton | editor2 = Holger H. Herwig | date = 24 February 2003 | title = The Origins of World War I | chapter = Chapter 1: World Wars: Definition and Causes | first1 = Richard F. | last1 = Hamilton | first2 = Holger H. | last2 = Herwig | publisher = Cambridge University Press | pages = 4–9 | isbn = 978-1-107-39386-8 | chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fcILAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA8 | access-date = 21 January 2022 | archive-date = 21 January 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220121060914/https://books.google.com/books?id=fcILAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA8 | url-status = live ))</ref> The British had hoped winning the war against its colonial rival France would improve the defensibility of its important American colonies, where tensions from settlers eager to move west of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] had been a substantive issue.((sfnp|Anderson|2007|loc=[https://books.google.com/books?id=FFO2clqJCqMC&pg=PA17 p. 17])) The new [[Diplomatic Revolution|British-Prussian alliance]] was successful in forcing France to cede [[Province of Quebec (1763–1791)|Canada]] to Britain, and [[Louisiana (New Spain)|Louisiana]] to [[Spanish Empire|Spain]], thus ostensibly securing [[British North America]] from external threats as intended. The war also allowed Britain to capture the [[Proto-industrialization|proto-industrialised]] [[Bengal Subah|Bengal]] from the French-allied [[Mughal Empire]], then Britain's largest competitor (and by far the world's single largest producer) in the textile trade, it was also able to flip [[Hyderabad State|Hyderabad]] from the Mughals to its cause, and capture the bulk of French territorial possessions in India, effectively shutting them out of the [[Indian subcontinent|sub-continent]].<ref>((cite book |last=Szabo |first=Franz A.J. |title=The Seven Years' War in Europe 1756–1763. |year=2007 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-582-29272-7|pages=432))</ref><ref>((cite book |last=Kennedy |first=Paul |author-link=Paul Kennedy |title=The Rise and Fall of British Naval Mastery |year=1976 |edition=new introduction |publisher=Penguin Books |location=London |isbn=978-0-684-14609-6))</ref> Importantly, the war also saw Britain becoming the dominant global naval power.<ref>((cite web |last=Eccles |first=William John |date=2006 |title=Seven Years' War |website=The Canadian Encyclopedia |url=http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/seven-years-war/ |access-date=17 June 2006))</ref>

Regardless of its successes in the Seven Years' War, the British government was left close to bankruptcy and in response it raised taxes considerably in order to pay its debts.<ref name="pb2Zp">[[#calloway2007|Calloway 2007]], p. 12</ref> Britain was also faced with the delicate task of pacifying its new French-Canadian subjects, as well as the many American Indian tribes who had supported France, without provoking a new war with France. In 1763, [[Pontiac's War]] broke out as a group of Indian tribes in the [[Great Lakes region]] and the Northwest (the modern American Midwest) were unhappy with the loss of congenial and friendly relations with the French and complained about being cheated by the new British monopoly on trade.((sfnp|Marston|2002|pp=84–85)) Moreover, the Indians feared that British rule would lead to white settlers displacing them from their land, whereas it was known that the French had only come as fur traders, and indeed this had been the original source of animosity on the part of British settlers with France and part of the reason the war had started in the first place.((sfnp|Marston|2002|pp=84–85)) Pontiac's War was going very badly for the British and it was only with their victory at the [[Battle of Bushy Run]] that a complete collapse of British power in the Great Lakes region was avoided.((sfnp|Marston|2002|p=87)) [[File:Map of territorial growth 1775.svg|thumb|left|A portion of eastern North America; the 1763 "proclamation line" is the border between the red and the pink areas.]]In response King George III issued the [[Royal Proclamation of 1763]], which forbade white settlement beyond the crest of the Appalachians, with the hope of appeasing the Indians and preventing further insurrection, but this led to considerable outrage in the [[Thirteen Colonies]], whose inhabitants were eager to acquire native lands. The [[Quebec Act]] of 1774, similarly intended to win over the loyalty of French Canadians, also spurred resentment among American colonists.<ref>((cite book |first=D. Peter |last=MacLeod |title=Northern Armageddon: The Battle of the Plains of Abraham |location=Vancouver |publisher=Douglas & McIntyre |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-55365-412-4))</ref> As such, dissatisfaction with the Royal Proclamation and "[[Taxation Without Representation]]" are said to have led to the Thirteen Colonies declaring their independence and starting the [[American War of Independence]] (1775–1783).<ref name="wtW8l">[[#calloway2007|Calloway 2007]], p. 4</ref><ref name="pb2Zp" />
This war was comprehensively supported by Britain's competitors, France and Spain, and Britain lost the war marking the end of the first British Empire. Britain and the new [[United States of America]] were able to retain the pre-existing trade arrangements from before independence, minimizing long-term harm to British trading interests. After the war of independence the American trade deficit with Britain was approximately 5:1 causing a shortage of gold for a number of years.<ref>Marshall Smelser, ''The Democratic Republic, 1801–1815'' (1968).</ref> However, the British Empire would shift its focus from North America to India, expanding from its new base in [[Bengal Presidency|Bengal]] and signalling the beginning of the second phase of the British Empire.

=== Portugal (1415–1822) ===
[[File:Portugal Império total.png|thumb|[[Portuguese Empire]] (1415–2002)]]

The [[Portuguese Empire]]<ref>((Cite web|title=Portuguese Empire ((!)) Encyclopedia.com|url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/portuguese-empire-0|access-date=7 April 2021|website=encyclopedia.com))</ref> was the first global empire in history, and also the earliest and longest-lived of the [[Western Europe]]an [[Colonialism|colonial]] empires. [[Portugal]]'s small size and population restricted the empire, in the 16th century, to a collection of small but well defended outposts along the African coasts, the main exceptions being Angola, Mozambique and Brazil. For most of the 16th century, the Portuguese [[Carreira da Índia|Indian Armadas]], then the world leader navy in shipbuilding and [[naval artillery]], dominated most of the Atlantic Ocean south of the Canary Islands, the Indian Ocean and the access to the western Pacific. The height of the empire was reached in the 16th century but the indifference of the [[Habsburg]] kings and the competition with new colonial empires like the [[British Empire|British]], [[French colonial empires|French]] and [[Dutch Empire|Dutch]] started its long and gradual decline. After the 18th century Portugal concentrated in the [[colonization]] of [[Brazil]] and [[Portuguese-speaking African countries|African possessions]].

The [[Treaty of Tordesillas]], between Spain and Portugal, divided the world outside of Europe in an exclusive duopoly along a north–south meridian 370 leagues, or ((convert|970|mi|km)), west of the Cape Verde islands. However, as it was not possible at the time to correctly measure longitude, the exact boundary was disputed by the two countries until 1777. The completion of these negotiations with Spain is one of several reasons proposed by historians for why it took nine years for the Portuguese to follow up on Dias's voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, though it has also been speculated that other voyages were in fact secretly taking place during that time. Whether or not this was the case, the long-standing Portuguese goal of finding a sea route to Asia was finally achieved in a ground-breaking voyage commanded by [[Vasco da Gama]].

=== Dutch Empire (1581–1795) ===
[[File:DutchColonialEmpire.png|thumb|Lands held by [[The Netherlands]]]]

The [[Dutch Empire]] controlled various territories after the Dutch achieved independence from [[Spain]] in the 16th century. The strength of their [[shipping]] industry and the expansion of [[trade|trading]] routes between Europe and the [[Orient]] bolstered the strength of the overseas [[Colonialism|colonial]] empire which lasted from the 16th to the 20th century. The Dutch initially built up colonial possessions on the basis of indirect state capitalist [[corporate colonialism]], as small European trading-companies often lacked the capital or the manpower for large-scale operations. The [[States General of the Netherlands|States General]] chartered larger organisations—the [[Dutch West India Company]] and the [[Dutch East India Company]]—in the early seventeenth century to enlarge the scale of trading operations in the [[West Indies]] and the Orient respectively. These trading operations eventually became one of the largest and most extensive maritime trading companies at the time, and once held a virtual monopoly on strategic European shipping-routes westward through the [[Southern Hemisphere]] around [[South America]] through the [[Strait of Magellan]], and eastward around [[Africa]], past the [[Cape of Good Hope]].<ref name="Hunt1">((cite book|last= Hunt|first= John|editor-last= Campbell |editor-first= Heather-Ann |title= Dutch South Africa: Early Settlers at the Cape, 1652–1708 |date= 2005|pages= 2–13|publisher= University of Pennsylvania Press |location= Philadelphia|isbn= 978-1904744955))</ref> The companies' domination of global commerce contributed greatly to a commercial revolution and a cultural flowering in the Netherlands of the 17th&nbsp;century, known as the [[Dutch Golden Age]]. During the Dutch Golden Age, Dutch trade, science and art were among the most acclaimed in Europe.<ref name="Hsin-Hui">((cite book |last= Hsin-Hui |first= Chiu|title= The Colonial 'civilizing Process' in Dutch Formosa: 1624–1662 |date= 2008|pages= 3–8|publisher= Tuta Sub Aegide Pallas |location= Leiden|isbn= 978-9004165076))</ref> Dutch military power was at its height in the middle of the 17th century and in that era the [[Royal Netherlands Navy|Dutch navy]] was the most powerful navy in the world.<ref>((Cite web|url=http://www.julianstockwin.com/RNN.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130511065442/http://www.julianstockwin.com/RNN.htm|title=Royal Netherlands Navy|archive-date=11 May 2013))</ref>

By the middle of the 17th century, the Dutch had overtaken Portugal as the dominant player in the spice and silk trade, and in 1652 founded a colony at Cape Town on the coast of South Africa, as a way-station for its ships on the route between Europe and Asia. After the first settlers spread out around the Company station, nomadic white livestock farmers, or Trekboers, moved more widely afield, leaving the richer, but limited, farming lands of the coast for the drier interior tableland. Between 1602 and 1796, many Europeans were sent to work in the Asia trade. The majority died of disease or made their way back to Europe, but some of them made the Indies their new home. Interaction between the Dutch and native population mainly took place in Sri Lanka and the modern Indonesian Islands. In some Dutch colonies there are major ethnic groups of [[Dutch people|Dutch]] ancestry descending from emigrated Dutch settlers. In South Africa the [[Boer]]s and [[Cape Dutch]] are collectively known as the [[Afrikaner]]s. The [[Burgher people]] of Sri Lanka and the [[Indo people]] of Indonesia as well as the [[Creole peoples|Creoles]] of [[Suriname]] are mixed race people of [[Dutch people|Dutch]] descent. In the [[United States|USA]] there have been three American presidents of [[Dutch diaspora|Dutch descent]]: [[Martin Van Buren]], the first president who was not of British descent, and whose first language was Dutch, the 26th president [[Theodore Roosevelt]], and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], the 32nd president, elected to four terms in office (1933 to 1945) and the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms.

In their search for new trade passages between [[Asia]] and [[Europe]], Dutch navigators explored and charted distant regions such as [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], [[Tasmania]], and parts of the eastern coast of [[North America]].<ref name="Fisher">((cite book|last= Fisher|first= Ann Richmond|title= Explorers of the New World Time Line|date= 2007|pages= 53–59|publisher= Teaching & Learning Company|location= Dayton, Ohio|isbn= 978-1429113175))</ref> During the period of [[proto-industrialization]], the empire received 50% of textiles and 80% of silks import from the India's [[Mughal Empire]], chiefly from its most developed region known as [[Bengal Subah]].<ref name="tong">((cite book |author=Junie T. Tong |year=2016 |title=Finance and Society in 21st Century China: Chinese Culture Versus Western Markets |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_UQGDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA151 |publisher=CRC Press |page=151 |isbn=978-1-317-13522-7))</ref><ref name="esposito">((cite book |editor1=John L. Esposito |editor1-link=John L. Esposito |year=2004 |title=The Islamic World: Past and Present |volume=1: Abba - Hist. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KZcohRpc4OsC&pg=PT190 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=174 |isbn=978-0-19-516520-3))</ref><ref>Nanda, J. N (2005). ((cite book |year=2005 | title=Bengal: the unique state | publisher=Concept Publishing Company. p. 10. | isbn=978-81-8069-149-2 | quote=Bengal [...] was rich in the production and export of grain, salt, fruit, maize, liquors and wines, precious metals and ornaments besides the output of its handlooms in silk and cotton. Europe referred to Bengal as the richest country to trade with.))</ref><ref name="Prakash">[[Om Prakash (historian)|Om Prakash]], "[http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX3447600139/WHIC?u=seat24826&xid=6b597320 Empire, Mughal] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221118051038/https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=WHIC&u=seat24826&id=GALE%7B%7B%21%7D%7DCX3447600139&v=2.1&it=r&asid=6b597320 |date=18 November 2022 ))", ''History of World Trade Since 1450'', edited by John J. McCusker, vol. 1, Macmillan Reference USA, 2006, pp. 237–240, ''World History in Context''. Retrieved 3 August 2017</ref>

In the 18th century, the Dutch colonial empire began to decline as a result of the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]] of 1780–1784, in which the Dutch Republic lost a number of its colonial possessions and trade monopolies to the [[British Empire]], along with the conquest of the [[Bengal Subah|Mughal Bengal]] at the [[Battle of Plassey]] by the [[East India Company]].<ref name="ray">((cite book |author=Indrajit Ray |year=2011 |title=Bengal Industries and the British Industrial Revolution (1757–1857) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CHOrAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA57 |publisher=Routledge |pages=57, 90, 174 |isbn=978-1-136-82552-1))</ref><ref name="Hobkirk">((cite book|last= Hobkirk|first= Michael|title= Land, Sea or Air?: Military Priorities- Historical Choices|date= 1992|pages= 77–80|publisher= Palgrave-Macmillan|location= Basingstoke|isbn= 978-0312074937))</ref><ref>Dalio, Ray. [https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/big-cycles-over-last-500-years-ray-dalio/ "The Big Cycles of the Dutch and British Empires and Their Currencies"] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001130930/https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/big-cycles-over-last-500-years-ray-dalio/ |date=1 October 2020 )), ''[[LinkedIn]]'', 21 May 2020</ref> Nevertheless, major portions of the empire survived until the advent of global [[decolonisation]] following [[World War II]], namely the [[Dutch East Indies|East Indies]] and [[Dutch colonisation of the Guianas|Dutch Guiana]].<ref name="DR1">((cite book|last= Jones|first= Guno|editor-last1= Essed|editor-first1= Philomena|editor-last2= Hoving|editor-first2= Isabel|title= Dutch Racism|date= 2014|pages= 315–316|publisher= Rodopi B.V.|location= Amsterdam|isbn= 978-9042037588))</ref> Three former colonial territories in the [[West Indies]] islands around the [[Caribbean Sea]]—[[Aruba]], [[Curaçao]], and [[Sint Maarten]]—remain as constituent countries represented within the Kingdom of the Netherlands.<ref name="DR1" />

=== Ottoman Empire (Turkey) (1453–1908) ===
[[File:OttomanEmpireIn1683.png|thumb|[[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] territories at its greatest extent]]
[[File:Kara-Keui (Galata) bridge, Constantinople, Turkey-LCCN2001699426.tif|thumb|left|[[Galata Bridge]] in [[Constantinople]], between the 19th and 20th century]]

The [[Ottoman Empire]] was a [[Turkic people|Turkic]] state, which at the height of its power (16th–17th centuries) spanned three continents (see: [[Administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire|extent of Ottoman territories]]) controlling parts of [[Southeastern Europe]], the [[Middle East]] and most of [[North Africa]].<ref>Caroline Finkel, '' Osman's Dream: The Story of the Ottoman Empire, 1300–1923.''</ref> The empire has been called by historians a "Universal Empire" due to both [[Roman Empire|Roman]] and [[Islamic]] traditions.<ref>H. Inaicik "The rise of the Ottoman Empire" in P.M. Holt, A.K. S. Lambstone, and B. Lewis (eds), ''The Cambridge History of Islam'' (2005).(Cambridge University). pages 295–200</ref> It was the head of the [[Gunpowder Empires]].

The empire was at the center of interactions between the [[Eastern world|Eastern]] and [[Western world]]s for six centuries. The Ottoman Empire was the only Islamic power to seriously challenge the rising power of [[Western Europe]] between the 15th and 19th centuries. With [[Istanbul]] (or [[Constantinople]]) as its capital, the Empire was in some respects an Islamic [[successor state|successor]] of earlier Mediterranean empires—the [[Roman Empire|Roman]] and [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] empires.

[[Ottoman military reforms|Ottoman military reform efforts]] begin with Selim III (1789–1807) who made the first major attempts to modernize the army along European lines. These efforts, however, were hampered by reactionary movements, partly from the religious leadership, but primarily from the Janissary corps, who had become anarchic and ineffectual. Jealous of their privileges and firmly opposed to change, they created a Janissary revolt. Selim's efforts cost him his throne and his life, but were resolved in spectacular and bloody fashion by his successor, the dynamic Mahmud II, who massacred the Janissary corps in 1826.

The effective military and bureaucratic structures of the previous century also came under strain during a protracted period of misrule by weak Sultans. But in spite of these difficulties, the Empire remained a major expansionist power until the [[Battle of Vienna]] in 1683, which marked the end of Ottoman expansion into Europe.  Much of the decline took place in the 19th century under pressure from Russia. [[Egypt]] and the [[Balkans]] were lost by 1913, and the Empire disintegrated after the First World War, leaving [[Turkey]] as the successor state.<ref>*Alan Palmer, ''The Decline and Fall of the Ottoman Empire''. (1992)</ref>

=== Mughal Empire (1526–1857) ===

[[File:Neues Grünes Gewölbe - Hofstaat zu Delhi am Geburtstag des Großmoguls.jpg|thumb|Model depicting the Court of Emperor Aurangzeb, by [[Johann Melchior Dinglinger]]]]
The Mughal Empire was founded in 1526 by [[Babur]] of the [[Barlas]] clan after his victories at the [[First Battle of Panipat]] and the [[Battle of Khanwa]] against the [[Delhi Sultanate]] and [[Rajputana|Rajput Confederation]].<ref name="JP">((Cite book |last=Hooja |first=Rima |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qqd1RAAACAAJ&q=rajasthan%20hooja |title=A History of Rajasthan |publisher=Rupa |year=2006 |isbn=9788129115010 |pages=454 |quote=From Baburs memoirs we learn that Sanga's success against the Mughal advance guard commanded by Abdul Aziz and other forces at Bayana, severely demoralised the fighting spirit of Baburs troops encamped near Sikri.))</ref><ref name="Berndl">((Cite book |last=Berndl |first=Klaus |title=National Geographic Visual History of the World |publisher=National Geographic Society |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7922-3695-5 |pages=318–320))</ref> Over the next centuries under [[Akbar]], [[Jahangir]], [[Shah Jahan]], the mughal empire would grow in area and power and dominate the [[Indian subcontinent]] reaching its maximum extent under Emperor [[Aurangzeb]]. This imperial structure lasted until 1720, shortly after the [[Mughal–Maratha Wars|Mughal-Maratha Wars]] and the death of Aurangzeb,<ref name="Stein2010-1">((citation |last=Stein |first=Burton |title=A History of India |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QY4zdTDwMAQC&pg=PA159 |pages=159– |year=2010 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-4443-2351-1 |author-link=Burton Stein)) Quote: "The imperial career of the Mughal house is conventionally reckoned to have ended in 1707 when the emperor Aurangzeb, a fifth-generation descendant of Babur, died. His fifty-year reign began in 1658 with the Mughal state seeming as strong as ever or even stronger. But in Aurangzeb's later years the state was brought to the brink of destruction, over which it toppled within a decade and a half after his death; by 1720 imperial Mughal rule was largely finished and an epoch of two imperial centuries had closed."</ref><ref name="Richards1995-3">((citation |last=Richards |first=John F. |title=The Mughal Empire |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HHyVh29gy4QC&pg=PAxv |page=xv |year=1995 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-56603-2)) Quote: "By the latter date (1720) the essential structure of the centralized state was disintegrated beyond repair."</ref> losing its influence to reveal powers such as the [[Maratha Empire]] and the [[Sikh Confederacy]]. The empire was formally dissolved by the [[British Raj]] after the [[Indian Rebellion of 1857]].

Indian subcontinent was producing about 25% of the world's industrial output from 1st millennium CE up to until the 18th century.<ref name="Williamson-1">[[Jeffrey G. Williamson]] & David Clingingsmith, [http://www.lse.ac.uk/economicHistory/Research/GEHN/GEHNPDF/Conf7_Williamson.pdf India's Deindustrialization in the 18th and 19th Centuries] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170329075904/http://www.lse.ac.uk/economicHistory/Research/GEHN/GEHNPDF/Conf7_Williamson.pdf|date=29 March 2017)), Global Economic History Network, [[London School of Economics]]</ref> The exchequer of the Emperor [[Aurangzeb]] reported an annual revenue of more than £100 million, or $450 million, making him one of the wealthiest monarchs in the world at the time.<ref>((cite book |last1=Harrison |first1=Lawrence |url=((google books |plainurl=y |id=RB0oAQAAIAAJ|page=158)) |title=Developing cultures: case studies |last2=Berger |first2=Peter L. |publisher=[[Routledge]] |year=2006 |isbn=9780415952798 |page=158 |author-link=Peter L. Berger))</ref><ref name="voss">((Cite book |last=Roy |first=Tirthankar |title=The Ashgate Companion to the History of Textile Workers, 1650–2000 |publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing]] |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-7546-6428-4 |editor1=Lex Heerma van Voss |page=255 |chapter=The Long Globalization and Textile Producers in India |author-link=Tirthankar Roy |editor2=Els Hiemstra-Kuperus |editor3=Elise van Nederveen Meerkerk |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f95ljbhfjxIC&pg=PA255))</ref> The empire had an extensive road network, which was vital to the economic infrastructure, built by a [[public works]] department set up by the Mughals, linking towns and cities across the empire, making trade easier to conduct.<ref name="Schmidt2015">((Cite book |last=Schmidt |first=Karl J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BqdzCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA100 |title=An Atlas and Survey of South Asian History |publisher=Routledge |year=2015 |isbn=978-1-317-47681-8 |pages=100–))</ref>

The Mughals adopted and standardised the [[rupee]] (''rupiya'', or silver) and [[Dam (Indian coin)|dam]] (copper) currencies introduced by [[Sur Empire|Sur]] Emperor [[Sher Shah Suri]] during his brief rule.<ref>((Cite web |title=Picture of original Mughal ''rupiya'' introduced by Sher Shah Suri |url=http://www.rbi.org.in/currency/museum/c-mogul.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021005231609/http://www.rbi.org.in/currency/museum/c-mogul.html |archive-date=5 October 2002 |access-date=4 August 2017))</ref> The currency was initially 48 dams to a single rupee in the beginning of Akbar's reign, before it later became 38 dams to a rupee in the 1580s, with the dam's value rising further in the 17th century as a result of new industrial uses for copper, such as in bronze cannons and brass utensils. The dam's value was later worth 30 to a rupee towards the end of Jahangir's reign, and then 16 to a rupee by the 1660s.<ref>((Cite book |last1=Irfan Habib |url=http://www.hkrdb.kar.nic.in/documents/Downloads/Good%20Reads/The%20Cambridge%20Economic%20History%20of%20India,%20Volume%201.pdf#page=480 |title=The Cambridge Economic History of India |last2=Dharma Kumar |last3=Tapan Raychaudhuri |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=1987 |volume=1 |page=464 |author-link=Irfan Habib |author-link2=Dharma Kumar |author-link3=Tapan Raychaudhuri))</ref> The Mughals minted coins with high purity, never dropping below 96%, and without [[debasement]] until the 1720s.<ref name="Richards2003">((Cite book |last=Richards |first=John F. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=i85noYD9C0EC&pg=PA27 |title=The Unending Frontier: An Environmental History of the Early Modern World |publisher=University of California Press |year=2003 |isbn=978-0-520-93935-6 |pages=27– |author-link=John F. Richards))</ref>

A major sector of the Mughal economy was agriculture.<ref name="Schmidt2015" /> A variety of crops were grown, including food crops such as wheat, rice, and [[barley]], and non-food [[cash crop]]s such as cotton, [[Indigofera tinctoria|indigo]] and [[opium]]. By the mid-17th century, Indian cultivators begun to extensively grow imported from the Americas, [[maize]] and [[tobacco]].<ref name="Schmidt2015" /> The Mughal administration emphasised [[agrarian reform]], started by [[Sher Shah Suri]], the work of which [[Akbar]] adopted and furthered with more reforms. The civil administration was organised in a hierarchical manner on the basis of merit, with promotions based on performance, exemplified by the common use of the [[seed drill]] among Indian peasants,<ref>((cite book |last1=Pagaza |first1=Ignacio |title=Winning the Needed Change: Saving Our Planet Earth |last2=Argyriades |first2=Demetrios |publisher=IOS Press |year=2009 |isbn=978-1-58603-958-5 |page=129))</ref> and built [[irrigation]] systems across the empire, which produced much higher [[crop yield]]s and increased the net revenue base, leading to increased agricultural production.<ref name="Schmidt2015" />

Manufacturing was also a significant contributor to the Mughal Economy. The Mughal empire produced about 25% of the world's industrial output up until the end of the 18th century.<ref name="Williamson-1" />  [[Manufactured goods]] and cash crops from the Mughal Empire were sold throughout the world. Key industries included textiles, [[shipbuilding]], and steel. Processed products included cotton textiles, [[yarn]]s, [[Thread (yarn)|thread]], silk, [[jute]] products, [[metalware]], and foods such as sugar, oils and butter<ref name="Schmidt2015" /> The Mughal Empire also took advantage of the demand of products from Mughal India in Europe, particularly cotton textiles, as well as goods such as spices, peppers, [[indigo]], silks, and [[saltpeter]] (for use in [[munitions]]).<ref name="Schmidt2015" /> [[1650–1700 in Western European fashion|European fashion]], for example, became increasingly dependent on Mughal Indian textiles and silks. From the late 17th century to the early 18th century, Mughal India accounted for 95% of [[East India Company|British imports]] from Asia, and the [[Bengal Subah]] province alone accounted for 40% of [[Dutch East India Company|Dutch imports]] from Asia.<ref name="Prakash2">[[Om Prakash (historian)|Om Prakash]], "[http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/CX3447600139/WHIC?u=seat24826&xid=6b597320 Empire, Mughal]", ''History of World Trade Since 1450'', edited by [[John J. McCusker]], vol. 1, Macmillan Reference US, 2006, pp. 237–240, ''World History in Context''. Retrieved 3 August 2017</ref>

The largest manufacturing industry in the Mughal Empire was [[textile manufacturing]], particularly cotton textile manufacturing, which included the production of [[piece goods]], [[calico]]s, and [[muslin]]s, Indian cotton textiles were the most important manufactured goods in world trade in the 18th century, consumed across the world from the Americas to Japan.<ref name="Parthasarathi2">((Citation |title=Why Europe Grew Rich and Asia Did Not: Global Economic Divergence, 1600–1850 |page=2 |year=2011 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-139-49889-0 |given=Prasannan |surname=Parthasarathi))</ref> By the early 18th century, Mughal Indian textiles were clothing people across the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, Europe, the Americas, Africa, and the Middle East.<ref name="Jeffrey G. Williamson 2011 912">((Cite book |last=Jeffrey G. Williamson |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QiDslL0o-hUC&pg=PA91 |title=Trade and Poverty: When the Third World Fell Behind |publisher=[[MIT Press]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-262-29518-5 |page=91 |author-link=Jeffrey G. Williamson))</ref> The most important centre of cotton production was the Bengal province, particularly around its capital city of [[Dhaka]].<ref name="Eaton2">Richard Maxwell Eaton (1996), [https://books.google.com/books?id=gKhChF3yAOUC&pg=PA202 ''The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204–1760'', p. 202], [[University of California Press]]</ref>

=== Papacy and Papal States (1420–1648) ===
[[File:Italy 1454 after the Peace of Lodi.jpg|thumb|Italy during the Peace of Lodi. The [[Papal States]] covered most of [[central Italy]].]]
The [[Papacy]] was considered one of the great powers of the age by important thinkers such as [[Machiavelli]] and [[Giovanni Botero]]. The [[Papal States]] covered central Italy and were expanded by warrior popes such as [[Pope Julius II|Julius II]]. Italy, although divided in several states, saw a period of great prosperity during the [[Renaissance]]. In 1420, [[Pope Martin V]] re-established Rome as the sole seat of the Catholic Church and put an end to the [[Western Schism]]. Between 1494 and the second half of the 16th century, Italy was the battleground of Europe. Competing monarchs, including Popes, clashed for European supremacy in Italy. In the late 1500s and early 1600s, the Papacy led the [[Counter-reformation]] effort. Pontiffs such as [[Pope Paul III|Paul III]] and [[Pope Pius V|Pius V]], exercised great diplomatic influence in Europe. Popes mediated the Peace of Nice (1538) between the Holy Roman Empire and France, as well as the [[Peace of Vervins]] (1598) between France and Spain. In the new world, thousands were converted to Catholicism by missionaries. Many European and Italian states (such as the [[Republic of Venice]] and the [[Republic of Genoa]]) were brought by the Papacy into "Holy Leagues" to defeat the Ottoman Empire: defeats occurred in Rhodes (1522), Preveza (1538), Budapest (1541), Algiers (1541), whereas victories took place at Vienna (1529), Tunis (1535), [[Battle of Lepanto|Lepanto]] (1571), and Malta (1565). Similarly, the Church supported Catholic leagues in the [[European wars of religion]] fought in France, the Low Countries, and Germany. France remained Catholic following the conversion of the French king, whereas half of the Low Countries were lost to Protestantism. It was the [[30 years war]] that ultimately ended the status of the Papacy as a great power. Although the Pope declared Westphalia "null and void", European rulers refused to obey Papal orders and even rejected Papal mediation at the negotiations of the treaty.

=== Toungoo Empire of Burma (1510–1599) ===
[[File:Map of Taungoo Empire (1580).png|thumb|upright=1|The First [[Toungoo Empire]] ]]

The '''First Toungoo Empire''' (((lang-my|တောင်ငူ ခေတ်)), ((IPA-my|tàʊɴŋù kʰɪʔ|)); also known as the '''First Toungoo Dynasty''', the '''Second Burmese Empire''' or simply the '''Toungoo Empire''') was the dominant power in [[mainland Southeast Asia]] in the second half of the 16th century. At its peak, Toungoo "exercised suzerainty from [[Manipur]] to the [[Cambodia]]n marches and from the borders of [[Kingdom of Mrauk U|Arakan]] to [[Yunnan]]" and was "probably the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia".<ref name="vbl-151-152">Lieberman 2003: 151–152</ref> The Toungoo Dynasty was the "most adventurous and militarily successful" in [[History of Myanmar|Burmese history]], but it was also the "shortest-lived".<ref name="atat-137-138">((cite book | last=Aung-Thwin | first=Michael A. | author2=Maitrii Aung-Thwin | title=A History of Myanmar Since Ancient Times | edition=illustrated | publisher=University of Hawai'i Press | year=2012 | location=Honolulu | isbn=978-1-86189-901-9 |pages=137–138))</ref>

The empire grew out of the principality of Toungoo, a minor vassal state of [[Ava Kingdom|Ava]] until 1510. The landlocked petty state began its rise in the 1530s under [[Tabinshwehti]] who went on to found the largest polity in [[Myanmar]] since the [[Pagan Kingdom|Pagan Empire]] by 1550. His more celebrated successor [[Bayinnaung]] then greatly expanded the empire, conquering much of mainland Southeast Asia by 1565. He spent the next decade keeping the empire intact, putting down rebellions in [[Ayutthaya Kingdom|Siam]], [[Lan Xang]] and the northernmost [[Shan states]]. From 1576 onwards, he declared a large sphere of influence in westerly lands—trans-Manipur states, Arakan and [[Ceylon]]. The empire, held together by [[patron-client relationship]]s, declined soon after his death in 1581. His successor [[Nanda Bayin|Nanda]] never gained the full support of the vassal rulers, and presided over the empire's precipitous collapse in the next 18 years.

The First Toungoo Empire marked the end of the period of petty kingdoms in mainland Southeast Asia. Although the overextended empire proved ephemeral, the forces that underpinned its rise were not. Its two main successor states—[[Nyaungyan period|Restored Toungoo Burma]] and Ayutthaya Siam—went on to dominate western and central mainland Southeast Asia, respectively, down to the mid-18th century.

=== Iran ===
[[File:Safavid Empire 1501 1722 AD.png|thumb|The [[Safavid Iran|Safavid Empire]] at its greatest extent]]
[[File:Afsharid Dynasty 1736 - 1802 (AD).PNG|thumb|Afsharid Empire: greatest extent, under [[Nader Shah]], 1741–43]]

==== Safavid Empire (1501–1736) ====
The Safavid Empire was one of the most significant ruling dynasties of Iran. They ruled one of the greatest [[History of Iran|Iranian Empires]] after the [[Muslim conquest of Persia]].<ref>[[Helen Chapin Metz]], ed. ''Iran, a Country study''. 989. University of Michigan, p. 313.</ref><ref>Emory C. Bogle. ''Islam: Origin and Belief''. University of Texas Press. 1989, p. 145.</ref><ref>Stanford Jay Shaw. History of the Ottoman Empire. Cambridge University Press. 1977, p. 77.</ref><ref>Andrew J. Newman, Safavid Iran: ''Rebirth of a Persian Empire'', IB Tauris (30 March 2006).</ref> The Safavids ruled from 1501 to 1736 and at their height, they controlled all of modern [[Iran]], [[Azerbaijan]] and [[Armenia]], most of [[Iraq]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Afghanistan]], and the [[Caucasus]], as well as parts of modern-day [[Pakistan]], [[Turkmenistan]] and [[Turkey]]. Safavid Iran was one of the Islamic "[[gunpowder empires]]". The Safavid Empire originated from [[Ardabil]] in [[Northern Iran|Iran]] and had its origins in a long established [[Sufi order]], called the ''[[Safaviya (sufi order)|Safaviyeh]]''. The Safavids established an independent unified Iranian state for the first time after the [[Muslim conquest of Persia]] and reasserted Iranian political identity, and established [[Shia Islam]] as the official religion in [[Iran]].

Despite their demise in 1736, the legacy that they left behind was the revival of [[Iran]] as an economic stronghold between East and West, the establishment of an efficient state and bureaucracy based upon "checks and balances", their architectural innovations and their patronage for fine arts. The Safavids have also left their mark down to the present era by [[Safavid conversion of Iran from Sunnism to Shiism|spreading Shi'a Islam]] in [[Iran]], as well as major parts of the [[Caucasus]], [[Mesopotamia]], and [[Anatolia]].

==== Afsharid Empire (1736–1796) ====
The Afsharid dynasty was an Iranian dynasty that originated from the [[Afshar tribe]] in Iran's north-eastern province of [[Khorasan Province|Khorasan]], ruling Iran in the mid-eighteenth century. The dynasty was founded in 1736 by the military genius [[Nader Shah]],<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=9o0AAwAAQBAJ The Sword of Persia: Nader Shah, from Tribal Warrior to Conquering Tyrant] "Nader commanded the most powerful military force in Asia, if not the world"</ref> who deposed the last member of the [[Safavid dynasty]] and proclaimed himself as the [[Shah]] of Iran. At its peak, the empire was arguably the most powerful in the world.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZOFqDgAAQBAJ&q=nader+shah+most+powerful+empire+in+the+world&pg=PA84 Modern Conflict in the Greater Middle East: A Country-by-Country Guide] page : 84 "Under its great ruler and military leader Nader Shah (1736–1747), Persia was arguably the world's most powerful empire"</ref> During Nader's reign, Iran reached its greatest extent since the [[Sasanian Empire]]. At its height it controlled modern-day Iran, [[Armenia]], [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]], [[Azerbaijan Republic]], parts of the [[North Caucasus]] ([[Dagestan]]), [[Afghanistan]], [[Bahrain]], [[Turkmenistan]], [[Uzbekistan]] and [[Pakistan]], and parts of [[Iraq]], [[Turkey]], [[United Arab Emirates]] and [[Oman]].

=== Polish Empire (1410–1699) ===
[[File:Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth 1635.svg|upright=1|thumb|[[Rzeczpospolita|Polish Empire]] at its greatest extent, c. 1635]]

The [[Polish–Lithuanian union|union]] of the [[Crown of the Kingdom of Poland|Kingdom of Poland]] and the [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania]], formed in 1385, emerged as a major power in Central and Eastern Europe following its victory at the [[Battle of Grunwald]] in 1410.<ref>((citation|first=Sven |last=Ekdahl |chapter=The Battle of Tannenberg-Grunwald-Žalgiris (1410) as reflected in Twentieth-Century monuments| editor=Victor Mallia-Milanes |title=The Military Orders: History and Heritage |volume=3 |publisher= Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. |year=2008 |isbn= 978-0-7546-6290-7|page=175|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dSM_w4Q1sUwC&pg=PA175))</ref><ref>((cite book|last=Grant|first=R. G.|year=2017|title=1001 Battles That Changed the Course of History|publisher=Chartwell Books|page=214|isbn=978-0-7858-3553-0))</ref><ref name="mk">((cite book|last=Kort|first=Michael|year=2001|title=The Handbook of the New Eastern Europe|location=Brookfield, Connecticut|pages=39–40))</ref> Poland–Lithuania covered a large territory in Central and Eastern Europe, making it the largest state in Europe at the time.<ref name="mk" /> Through its territorial possessions and vassal principalities and protectorates, its influence extended from the [[Baltic Sea]] to the [[Black Sea]], reaching [[Livonia]] (present-day [[Estonia]] and [[Latvia]]) in the north,<ref>((cite book|last=Brand|first=Hanno|year=2005|title=Trade, Diplomacy and Cultural Exchange: Continuity and change in the North Sea area and the Baltic c. 1350–1750|location=Hilversum|publisher=Uitgeverij Verloren|page=17|isbn=90-6550-881-3))</ref> and [[Moldavia]] and [[Crimea]] in the south and southeast.<ref>((cite journal|last=Deletant|first=Dennis|year=1986|title=Moldavia between Hungary and Poland, 1347-1412|journal=The Slavonic and East European Review|publisher=[[Modern Humanities Research Association]], [[UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies]]|volume=64|issue=2|pages=191, 210|issn=1427-1443))</ref><ref>((cite book|last=Małowist|first=Marian|year=2010|title=Western Europe, Eastern Europe and World Development, 13th–18th Centuries|location=Leiden/Boston|publisher=Brill|pages=115–116|isbn=978-90-04-17917-2))</ref> In the 15th century the ruling [[Jagiellonian dynasty]] managed to place its members on the thrones of the neighbouring kingdoms of [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]] and [[Kingdom of Hungary|Hungary]], becoming one of the most powerful houses in Europe.<ref name="icm">((cite web|url=http://info-poland.icm.edu.pl/classroom/longhist2.html|title=The Historical Setting: The Jagiellonian Era (1385–1572)|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref>

The [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth|Rzeczpospolita]] was one of the largest, most powerful and most populous<ref name="pbs map">[https://www.pbs.org/wnet/heritage/episode5/atlas/map3.html# Heritage: Interactive Atlas: Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth], last accessed on 19 March 2006. "At its apogee, the Poland comprised some ((convert|400000|sqmi|km2)) and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million." For population comparisons, see also those maps: ((cite web |url=http://homepage.interaccess.com/%7Enetpol/POLISH/historia/MAPY/1618.jpg |title=AD 1618 Republic of Poland The Bastion of Western Civilization |access-date=2017-06-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217222629/http://homepage.interaccess.com/~netpol/POLISH/historia/MAPY/1618.jpg |archive-date=17 February 2013 )), ((cite web |url=http://homepage.interaccess.com/%7Enetpol/POLISH/historia/MAPY/1717.jpg |title=AD 1717 Republic of Poland in Crisis of Sovereignty With Western Christianity |access-date=2017-06-18 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130217222634/http://homepage.interaccess.com/~netpol/POLISH/historia/MAPY/1717.jpg |archive-date=17 February 2013 )).</ref> countries in 16th, 17th, and 18th century [[Europe]]. In fact, Poland was a major power that imposed its will on weaker neighbors. Its political structure was formed in 1569 by the [[Union of Lublin]], which transformed the previous Polish–Lithuanian union into the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and lasted in this form until the adoption of the [[Constitution of May 3, 1791]]. In the 16th century, the area of the Rzeczpospolita reached almost 1 million km<sup>2</sup>, with a population of 11 million. At that time, it was the third largest country in Europe, and the largest country of [[Western Christianity|Western Christian]] Europe.<ref>((cite journal|last=Koyama|first=Satoshi|year=2007|title=The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth as a Political Space: Its Unity and Complexity|journal=Regions in Central and Eastern Europe: Past and Present|publisher=Slavic Research Center [[Hokkaido University]]|issue=15|page=137))</ref> Poland was a political, military and economic power.
The Union possessed features unique among contemporary states. This political system unusual for its time stemmed from the ascendance of the szlachta [[nobility|noble class]] over other social classes and over the [[political system]] of [[monarchy]]. In time, the szlachta accumulated enough privileges (such as those established by the [[Nihil novi]] Act of 1505) that no monarch could hope to break the szlachta's grip on power. The Commonwealth's political system does not readily fit into a simple category; it may best be described as a melange of:
* [[confederation]] and [[federation]], with regard to the broad autonomy of its regions. It is, however, difficult to decisively call the Commonwealth either confederation or federation, as it had some qualities of both of them;
* [[oligarchy]], as only the szlachta—around 15% of the population—had political rights;
* [[democracy]], since all the szlachta were equal in rights and privileges, and the Sejm could veto the king on important matters, including [[legislation]] (the adoption of new laws), foreign affairs, declaration of war, and taxation (changes of existing taxes or the levying of new ones). Also, the 9% of Commonwealth population who enjoyed those political rights (the szlachta)<ref name="books.google">((in lang|en)) ((cite book |author=David Sneath|title=The headless state: aristocratic orders, kinship society, & misrepresentations of nomadic inner Asia |year=2007|page=188|publisher=Columbia University Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-231-14054-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OR14qaApQbgC))</ref> was a substantially larger percentage than in majority European countries;<ref name="books.google_a">((in lang|en)) ((cite book |author=M. L. Bush|title=Rich noble, poor noble |year=1988|pages=8–9|publisher=Manchester University Press ND |isbn=0-7190-2381-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TIG7AAAAIAAJ))</ref> note that in 1789 in France only about 1% of the population had the right to vote, and in 1867 in the United Kingdom, only about 3%.<ref name="books.google" /><ref name="books.google_a" />
* [[elective monarchy]], since the monarch, elected by the szlachta, was Head of State;
* [[constitutional monarchy]], since the monarch was bound by ''[[pacta conventa]]'' and other laws, and the ''[[szlachta]]'' could disobey decrees of the king that they deemed illegal.
The [[Polish Golden Age|Polish "Golden Age"]], in the reigns of [[Sigismund I the Old|Sigismund I]] and [[Sigismund II Augustus|Sigismund II]], the last two Jagiellonian kings, and more generally the 16th century, is identified with the culture of the [[Polish Renaissance]]. This flowering had its material base in the prosperity of the elites, both the landed nobility and urban patriciate at such centers as [[Kraków]] and [[Gdańsk]]. The [[Jagiellonian University|University of Kraków]] became one of the leading centers of learning in Europe, and in Poland [[Nicolaus Copernicus]] formulated a model of the universe that [[Heliocentrism|placed the Sun rather than Earth at its center]], making a groundbreaking contribution, which sparked the [[Scientific Revolution]] in Europe.<ref name="mk" /><ref name="icm" /> Following the Union of Lublin, at various times, through personal unions and vassalages, Poland's sphere of influence reached Sweden and Finland in Northern Europe, the [[Danube]] in Southeastern Europe,<ref>((cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Moldavia|title=Moldavia|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref><ref>((cite web|url=https://encyklopedia.pwn.pl/haslo/Zamoyski-Jan;4000199.html|title=Zamoyski Jan|website=Encyklopedia PWN|access-date=9 July 2022|language=pl))</ref> and the [[Couronian colonization|Caribbean and West Africa]]. After victories in the [[Dimitriads]] (the [[Battle of Klushino]], 1610), with Polish forces entering [[Moscow]], [[Sigismund III]]'s son, Prince [[Władysław IV Vasa|Władysław of Poland]], was briefly elected [[Tsar of Russia]]. ((See also|Golden Liberty)) The victory of Polish-led forces at the [[Battle of Vienna]] in 1683 saved Austria from [[Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] conquest and marked the end of Ottoman advances into Europe.<ref>((cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Siege-of-Vienna-1683|title=Siege of Vienna|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref><ref>((cite journal|author=Leitsch, Walter|title=1683: The Siege of Vienna|journal=History Today|date=July 1983|volume=33|issue=7|url=http://www.historytoday.com/walter-leitsch/1683-siege-vienna|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref>

=== Swedish Empire (1611–1721) ===
[[File:Swedish Empire (1560-1815) en2.png|thumb|Formation of the Swedish Empire, 1560–1660]]

[[Swedish Empire|Sweden]] emerged as a great European [[great power|power]] under [[Axel Oxenstierna]] and King [[Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden|Gustavus Adolphus]]. As a result of acquiring territories seized from Russia and the [[Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth]], as well as its involvement in the [[Thirty Years' War]], Sweden found itself transformed into the leader of [[Protestant]]ism. The mid-17th and early 18th centuries were Sweden's most successful years as a great power. Sweden also had colonial possessions as a minor [[Swedish colonial empire|colonial Empire]] that existed from 1638 to 1663 and later from 1784 to 1878. Sweden founded overseas colonies, principally in the New World. [[New Sweden]] was founded in the valley of the [[Delaware River]] in 1638, and Sweden later laid claim to a number of Caribbean islands. A [[Swedish Gold Coast|string of Swedish forts and trading posts]] was constructed along the coast of West Africa as well, but these were not designed for Swedish settlers.

Sweden reached its largest territorial extent during the rule of [[Charles X of Sweden|Charles X]] (1622–1660) after the [[treaty of Roskilde]] in 1658. After half a century of expansive warfare, the Swedish economy had deteriorated. It would become the lifetime task of Charles' son, [[Charles XI of Sweden|Charles XI]] (1655–1697), to rebuild the economy and refit the army. His legacy to his son, the coming ruler of Sweden [[Charles XII of Sweden|Charles XII]], was one of the finest arsenals in the world, with a large standing army and a great fleet. Sweden's largest threat at this time, Russia, had a larger army but was far behind in both equipment and training. The Swedish army crushed the Russians at the [[Battle of Narva (1700)|Battle of Narva]] in 1700, one of the first battles of the [[Great Northern War]]. This led to an overambitious campaign against Russia in 1707, however, ending in a decisive Russian victory at the [[Battle of Poltava]] (1709). The campaign had a successful opening for Sweden, which came to occupy half of Poland and Charles laid claim to the Polish throne. But after a long march exposed by [[cossack]] raids, the Russian Tsar [[Peter the Great]]'s scorched-earth techniques and the very cold Russian climate, the Swedes stood weakened with shattered confidence and enormously outnumbered by the Russian army at [[Poltava]].<ref>((cite book|author1=Derek Mckay|author2=H.M. Scott|title=The Rise of the Great Powers 1648 – 1815|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OaiQBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA10|year=1983|publisher=Pearson|pages=10–14|isbn=9781317872849))</ref><ref>Kekke Stadin, "The masculine image of a great power: Representations of Swedish imperial power c. 1630–1690."'' Scandinavian journal of history'' 30.1 (2005): 61–82.</ref>

During the Thirty Years' War, Sweden managed to conquer approximately half of the member states of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. The fortunes of war would shift back and forth several times. After its defeat in the [[Battle of Nördlingen (1634)]], confidence in Sweden among the Swedish-controlled German states was damaged, and several of the provinces refused further Swedish military support, leaving Sweden with only a couple of northern German provinces. After France intervened on the same side as Sweden, fortunes shifted again. As the war continued, the civilian and military death toll grew, and when it was over, it led to severe depopulation in the German states. Although exact population estimates do not exist, historians estimate that the population of the Holy Roman Empire fell by one-third as a result of the war.<ref>((cite journal | first = Jan | last = De Vries | title = The economic crisis of the seventeenth century after fifty years | journal = The Journal of Interdisciplinary History | volume = 40 | number = 2 | date = 2009 | page = 160 ))</ref>

=== Egypt (1805–1882, 1882–1914) ===
((More citations needed section|date=January 2023))
[[File:Egypt under Muhammad Ali Dynasty map en.png|thumb|The provinces of the Egyptian Khedivate Empire in Africa, Asia and Europe]]
The Egyptian Khedivate was a major world and regional power which began to emerge starting from the defeat and expulsion of Napoleon Bonaparte from Egypt. This modern-age Egyptian Empire has expanded to control several countries and nations including present-day [[Sudan]], [[South Sudan]], [[Eritrea]], [[Djibouti]], northern [[Somalia]], [[State of Israel|Israel]], [[Lebanon]], [[Jordan]], [[Syria]], [[Greece]], [[Cyprus]], southern and central [[Turkey]], in addition to parts from [[Libya]], [[Chad]], [[Central African Republic]], and [[Democratic Republic of Congo]], as well as northwestern [[Saudi Arabia]], parts of [[Yemen]] and the [[Kingdom of Hejaz]]. During that era, Egypt has succeeded to re-emerged again to its previous centuries-long glory as a global Islamic power to an extent that was even stronger and healthier than the fading [[Ottoman Empire]]. Egypt maintained its status as a regional power until the British occupation of the country after the [[Anglo-Egyptian War]].

The Egyptian-based [[Albanians|Albanian]] [[Muhammad Ali dynasty]] has brought several social, educational, political, economic, judicial, strategic and military reforms that have deeply depended on the human resources of [[Egyptians]] as the native powerhouse of the country instead of depending on foreigner [[Circassia]]ns and Turks who were associated with the Ottoman warlords during the Ottoman control of Egypt.
With the emerging world-class national Egyptian industries, the [[Egyptian Army]] has showed an international level of prowess to the extent that it was the major Islamic military in the [[Islamic World]]. Egypt became also one of the first countries in the world to introduce railway transportation.

Egypt has been successful in reforming its economy to become based on developed agriculture and modernised industries. A big number of factories have been set up and new [[Nile]] canals have been dug to increase the surface area of Egyptian fertile arable land. Another notable fact of the internationally competitive economic progress of Egypt during that era was the development of new cultivations such as [[Cotton]], [[Mango]] and many other crops. The legacy of these agricultural advancements was the base of Egypt's current success in taking its rightful place as one of the best sources of high-quality cotton on a global scale.

== High modern great powers ==
<!--General Sherman incident links here-->
((Further|Modern era|Contemporary history|International relations (1814–1919)))

=== Second British Empire ===
((Main article|British Empire))
[[File:The British Empire.png|thumb|[[British Empire]], 1600–present. By 1920 it had become the [[list of largest empires|largest empire in history]], constituting approximately 25% of the world's surface and 25% of the world's people.<ref name="Angus Maddison 2001">Angus Maddison. ''The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective'' (p. 98, 242). [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development|OECD]], Paris, 2001.</ref>]]

[[File:Houses.of.parliament.overall.arp.jpg|thumb|left| The [[Palace of Westminster]], with [[Elizabeth Tower]] and [[Westminster Bridge]] ]]

The Second British Empire was built primarily in Asia, the Middle East and Africa after 1800. It included colonies in Canada, the [[Caribbean]], and [[British India|India]], and shortly thereafter began the settlement of [[Australia]] and [[New Zealand]]. Following France's 1815 defeat in the [[Napoleonic Wars]], Great Britain took possession of many more overseas territories in Africa and Asia, and established informal empires of free trade in South America, [[Persia]], etc.

At its height the British Empire was the [[World's largest empires|largest empire]] in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. In [[International relations of the Great Powers (1814–1919)|1815–1914]] the [[Pax Britannica]] was the most powerful unitary authority in history due to the [[History of the Royal Navy|Royal Navy]]'s unprecedented naval predominance.<ref>Nigel Dalziel, ''The Penguin Historical Atlas of the British Empire'' (2006),</ref>

During the 19th century, the [[United Kingdom]] was the first country in the world to industrialise and embrace free trade, giving birth to the [[Industrial Revolution]]. The rapid industrial growth after the conquests of the wealthy [[Mughal Bengal]] transformed Great Britain into the world's largest industrial and financial power, while the world's largest navy gave it undisputed control of the seas and international trade routes, an advantage which helped the British Empire, after a mid-century liberal reaction against empire-building, to grow faster than ever before. The Victorian empire colonised large parts of [[Africa]], including such territories as [[South Africa]], [[Egypt]], [[Kenya]], [[Sudan]], [[Nigeria]], and [[Ghana]], most of [[Oceania]], colonies in the Far East, such as [[Singapore]], [[Malaysia]], and [[Hong Kong]], and took control over the whole [[Indian subcontinent]], making it the largest empire in the world.<ref>Timothy H. Parsons, ''The British Imperial Century, 1815–1914: A World History Perspective'' (2nd ed. 2019)</ref>

After victory in the [[First World War]], the Empire gained control of territories such as [[Tanzania]] and [[Namibia]] from the [[German Empire]], and [[Iraq]] and [[Palestine (region)|Palestine]] (including [[Mandate for Palestine|the Transjordan]]) from the [[Ottoman Empire]]. By this point in 1920 the British empire had grown to become [[list of largest empires|the largest empire in history]], controlling approximately 25% of the world's land surface and 25% of the world's population.<ref name="Angus Maddison 2001"/> It covered about ((convert|36.6|e6km2|e6sqmi|abbr=unit)). Because of its magnitude, it was often referred to as "[[the empire on which the sun never sets]]".<ref>Timothy H. Parsons, ''The Second British Empire'' (2014)</ref>

The political and social changes and economic disruption in the United Kingdom and throughout the world caused by First World War followed only two decades later by the [[Second World War]] caused the Empire to gradually break up as colonies were given independence. Much of the reason the Empire ceased was because many colonies by the mid-20th century were no longer as undeveloped as at the arrival of British control nor as dependent and social changes throughout the world during the first half of the 20th century gave rise to national identity. The British Government, reeling from the economic cost of two successive world wars and changing social attitudes towards empire, felt it could no longer afford to maintain it if the country were to recover economically, pay for the newly created [[welfare state]], and fight the newly emerged [[Cold War]] with the [[Soviet Union]].

The influence and power of the British Empire dropped dramatically after the Second World War, especially after the [[Partition of India]] in 1947 and the [[Suez Crisis]] in 1956. The [[Commonwealth of Nations]] is the successor to the Empire, where the United Kingdom is an equal member with all other states.

=== France ===
((Main article|French colonial empire))
[[File:EmpireFrench.png|thumb|The French empire with its colonies (dark blue) and occupied territories (light blue) in 1812]]France was a dominant empire possessing many [[colonies]] in various locations around the world. The [[French colonial empire]] is the set of territories outside Europe that were under French rule primarily from the 17th century to the late 1960s (some see the French control of places such as New Caledonia as a continuation of that colonial empire). The first French colonial empire reached its peak in 1680 at over ((convert|10000000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on)), which at the time, was the second largest in the world behind the [[Spanish Empire]]. In the 19th and 20th centuries, the colonial empire of France was the second largest in the world behind the British Empire. The French colonial empire extended over ((convert|13500000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on)) of land at its height in the 1920s and 1930s. Including metropolitan France, the total amount of land under French sovereignty reached ((convert|13500000|km2|sqmi|abbr=on)) at the time, which is 10.0% of the Earth's total land area.

The total area of the French colonial empire, with the first (mainly in the Americas and Asia) and second (mainly in Africa and Asia), the French colonial empires combined, reached 24,000,000 km2 (9,300,000 sq mi), the second largest in the world (the first being the British Empire).

France began to establish colonies in North America, the Caribbean and India, following Spanish and Portuguese successes during the [[Age of Discovery]], in rivalry with Britain for supremacy. A series of wars with Britain during the 18th and early 19th centuries which France lost ended its colonial ambitions on these continents, and with it is what some historians term the "first" French colonial empire. In the 19th century, France established a new empire in Africa and South East Asia. Some of these colonies lasted beyond the Second World War.((clear))

=== Late Spanish Empire ===
((Main article|Spanish Empire))
[[File:Spanish Empire Anachronous 0.PNG|thumb|Areas pertaining to the [[Spanish Empire]] at various times over a period exceeding 400 years]]

After the Napoleonic period the Bourbon dynasty was restored in Spain and over the huge number of Spanish territories around the world. But the shock of the [[Peninsular War]] sparked declarations of independence in the Latin America controlled by Spain and by 1835 [[Spanish American wars of independence|successive revolutions]] had signed the end of the Spanish rule over the majority of this countries. Spain retained fragments of its empire in the Caribbean ([[Cuba]] and [[Puerto Rico]]); Asia ([[Philippines]]); and Oceania ([[Guam]], [[Micronesia]], [[Palau]], and [[Northern Marianas]]) until the [[Spanish–American War]] of 1898. Spanish participation in the [[Scramble for Africa]] was minimal: [[Spanish Morocco]] was held until 1956 and [[Spanish Guinea]] and the [[Spanish Sahara]] were held until 1968 and 1975 respectively. The [[Canary Islands]], [[Ceuta]], [[Melilla]] and the other ''[[Plazas de Soberanía]]'' on the northern African coast have remained part of Spain.

=== Austrian Empire (and Austria-Hungary) ===
((Main article|Austrian Empire|Austria-Hungary))
The [[Habsburg]] Empire became one of the key powers in Europe after the Napoleonic wars, with a sphere of influence stretching over [[Central Europe]], Germany, and Italy. During the second half of the 19th century, the Habsburgs could not prevent the unification of Italy and Germany. Eventually, the complex internal power struggle resulted in the establishment of a so-called dual monarchy between Austria and Hungary. Following the defeat and dissolution of the monarchy after the [[First World War]], both [[Austria]] and [[Hungary]] became independent and self-governing countries ([[First Austrian Republic]], [[Kingdom of Hungary]]). Other political entities emerged from the destruction of the [[Great War]] including [[Poland]], [[Czechoslovakia]], and the [[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes]].

=== Prussia and Germany ===
((Main article|Kingdom of Prussia|German Empire|Nazi Germany))
[[File:Kingdom of Prussia 1870.svg|thumb|[[Prussia]] in Europe at its greatest extent in 1870]]

The [[Kingdom of Prussia]] attained its greatest importance in the 18th and 19th centuries, when it conquered various territories previously held by Sweden,<ref>((cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Second-Northern-War|title=Second Northern War|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref><ref>((cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Congress-of-Vienna|title=Congress of Vienna|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref> Austria, Poland, France, Denmark, and various minor German principalities.<ref name=prussia>((cite news|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Prussia|title=Prussia|newspaper=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=9 July 2022))</ref> It became a European great power under the reign of [[Frederick II of Prussia]] (1740–1786).<ref name=prussia/> It dominated northern [[Germany]] politically, economically, and in terms of population, and played a key role in the unification of Germany in 1871 (see ''Prussia and Germany'' section below).

After the territorial acquisitions of the [[Congress of Vienna]] (1815), the [[Kingdom of Prussia]] became the only great power with a majority German-speaking population.<ref name=prussia/> During the 19th century, Chancellor [[Otto von Bismarck]] pursued a policy of uniting the German principalities into a "[[Kleindeutsche Lösung|Lesser Germany]]" which would exclude the [[Austrian Empire]]. Prussia was the core of the [[North German Confederation]] formed in 1867, which became part of the [[German Empire]] or ''[[Deutsches Reich]]'' in 1871 when the southern German states, excluding Austria, were added.

[[File:Reichstag und Siegessäule um 1900.jpg|thumb|left|[[Reichstag (building)|Reichstag]] in Berlin, 1900]]
After 1850, the states of Germany had rapidly become industrialized, with particular strengths in coal, iron (and later steel), chemicals, and railways. In 1871, Germany had a population of 41&nbsp;million people; by 1913, this had increased to 68&nbsp;million. A heavily rural collection of states in 1815, the now united Germany became predominantly urban.<ref>J. H. Clapham, ''The Economic Development of France and Germany 1815–1914'' (1936)</ref> The success of German industrialization manifested itself in two ways since the early 20th century: The German factories were larger and more modern than their British and French counterparts.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Germany/The-economy-1890-1914|title=Germany - The economy, 1890–1914 &#124; Britannica|website=www.britannica.com))</ref> The dominance of the German Empire in natural sciences, especially in physics and chemistry was such that one((what|date=August 2023)) of all Nobel Prizes went to German inventors and researchers. During its 47 years of existence, the German Empire became the industrial, technological, and scientific giant of Europe, and by 1913, Germany was the largest economy in Continental Europe and the third-largest in the world.<ref name="Gat2008">((cite book|author=Azar Gat|title=War in Human Civilization|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=S6gSDAAAQBAJ|year=2008|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-923663-3|page=517))</ref> Germany also became a [[great power]], it built up the longest railway network of Europe, the world's strongest army,<ref>Alfred Vagts, "Land and Sea Power in the Second German Reich." ''[[The Journal of Military History]]'' 3.4 (1939): 210+ ((JSTOR|3038611))</ref> and a fast-growing industrial base.<ref>Paul Kennedy, ''The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000'' (1987)</ref> Starting very small in 1871, in a decade, the [[Imperial German Navy|navy]] became second only to [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Britain]]'s [[Royal Navy]]. After the removal of [[Otto von Bismarck]] by [[Wilhelm II]] in 1890, the empire embarked on ''[[Weltpolitik]]'' – a bellicose new course that ultimately contributed to the outbreak of World War I.

[[File:German colonial.PNG|thumb|[[German Empire|German]] colonies in 1914]]
Wilhelm II wanted Germany to have her "[[place in the sun]]", like Britain, which he constantly wished to emulate or rival.<ref>((cite web|title=Wilhelm II (1859–1941)|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/wilhelm_kaiser_ii.shtml|publisher=BBC|access-date=19 April 2014))</ref> With German traders and merchants already active worldwide, he encouraged colonial efforts in Africa and the Pacific ("[[new imperialism]]"), causing the German Empire to vie with other European powers for remaining "unclaimed" territories. With the encouragement or at least the acquiescence of Britain, which at this stage saw Germany as a counterweight to her old rival France, Germany acquired [[German South West Africa|German Southwest Africa]] (modern [[Namibia]]), [[Kamerun|German Kamerun]] (modern [[Cameroon]]), [[Togoland]] (modern [[Togo]]) and [[German East Africa]] (modern [[Rwanda]], [[Burundi]], and the mainland part of current [[Tanzania]]). Islands were gained in the Pacific through purchase and treaties and also a 99-year lease for the territory of [[Kiautschou]] in northeast China. But of these German colonies only Togoland and [[German Samoa]] (after 1908) became self-sufficient and profitable; all the others required subsidies from the Berlin treasury for building infrastructure, school systems, hospitals and other institutions.

After the [[World War I]] broke out, Germany participated in the war as a part of the [[Central Powers]]. At its height, Germany occupied [[Belgium]] and parts of [[French Third Republic|France]], as well as acquired Ukraine and the [[Baltic states|Baltic States]] in the [[Treaty of Brest-Litovsk]]. Soon, Germany lost its status as a great power in the [[Treaty of Versailles]] as it ceded some of its territories and all of its overseas territories to the [[British Empire|Britain]] and France, as well as gave up part of its military.((sfn|Truitt|2010|p=114))<ref name="Articles 33 and 34" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Articles 33 and 34]]</ref>((sfn|Reinach|1920|p=193))<ref name="Articles 45 and 49" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Articles 45 and 49]]</ref><ref name="Section V preamble and Article 51" group="n.">[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III#Article 51|Section V preamble and Article 51]]</ref><ref name="Articles 81 and 83" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Articles 81 and 83]]</ref><ref name="Article 88 and annex" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Article 88 and annex]]</ref><ref name="Article 94" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Article 94]]</ref>((sfn|Ingrao|Szabo|2007|p=261))<ref name="Article 99" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Article 99]]</ref><ref name="Articles 100–104" group=n.>[[s:Treaty of Versailles/Part III|Articles 100–104]]</ref>

[[File:Greater German Reich (1942).svg|thumb|German-occupied territories during World War II in 1942. Germany (Reich) is shown in darkest green.]]

Germany rose back to be a great power in 1933, when the [[Nazi Party|Nazi Germany]] replaced the [[Weimar Republic]] as the new government of Germany. The most pressing economic matter the Nazis initially faced was the 30 per cent national unemployment rate.((sfn|DeLong|1997)) Economist Dr. [[Hjalmar Schacht]], President of the [[Reichsbank]] and Minister of Economics, created a scheme for deficit financing in May 1933. Capital projects were paid for with the issuance of promissory notes called [[Mefo bills]]. When the notes were presented for payment, the Reichsbank printed money. Hitler and his economic team expected that the upcoming territorial expansion would provide the means of repaying the soaring national debt.((sfn|Evans|2005|p=345)) Schacht's administration achieved a rapid decline in the unemployment rate, the largest of any country during the Great Depression.((sfn|DeLong|1997)) Economic recovery was uneven, with reduced hours of work and erratic availability of necessities, leading to disenchantment with the regime as early as 1934.((sfn|Tooze|2006|p=97))

In October 1933, the [[Junkers|Junkers Aircraft Works]] was expropriated. In concert with other aircraft manufacturers and under the direction of Aviation Minister Göring, production was ramped up. From a workforce of 3,200 people producing 100 units per year in 1932, the industry grew to employ a quarter of a million workers manufacturing over 10,000 technically advanced aircraft annually less than ten years later.((sfn|Tooze|2006|pp=125–127))

An elaborate bureaucracy was created to regulate imports of raw materials and finished goods with the intention of eliminating foreign competition in the German marketplace and improving the nation's [[balance of payments]]. The Nazis encouraged the development of synthetic replacements for materials such as oil and textiles.((sfn|Tooze|2006|p=131)) As the market was experiencing a glut and prices for petroleum were low, in 1933 the Nazi government made a profit-sharing agreement with [[IG Farben]], guaranteeing them a 5 per cent return on capital invested in their synthetic oil plant at [[Leuna]]. Any profits in excess of that amount would be turned over to the Reich. By 1936, Farben regretted making the deal, as excess profits were by then being generated.((sfn|Tooze|2006|pp=106, 117–118)) In another attempt to secure an adequate wartime supply of petroleum, Germany intimidated [[Romania]] into signing a trade agreement in March 1939.((sfn|Tooze|2006|pp=308–309))

Major public works projects financed with deficit spending included the construction of a network of ''[[Reichsautobahn|Autobahnen]]'' and providing funding for programmes initiated by the previous government for housing and agricultural improvements.((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=322–326, 329)) To stimulate the construction industry, credit was offered to private businesses and subsidies were made available for home purchases and repairs.((sfn|Evans|2005|p=320)) On the condition that the wife would leave the workforce, a loan of up to 1,000 Reichsmarks could be accessed by young couples of Aryan descent who intended to marry, and the amount that had to be repaid was reduced by 25 per cent for each child born.((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=330–331)) The caveat that the woman had to remain unemployed outside the home was dropped by 1937 due to a shortage of skilled labourers.((sfn|Evans|2005|p=166))

Envisioning widespread car ownership as part of the new Germany, Hitler arranged for designer [[Ferdinand Porsche]] to draw up plans for the ''KdF-wagen'' ([[Strength Through Joy]] car), intended to be an automobile that everyone could afford. A prototype was displayed at the [[International Motor Show Germany|International Motor Show]] in Berlin on 17 February 1939. With the outbreak of World War II, the factory was converted to produce military vehicles. None were sold until after the war, when the vehicle was renamed the [[Volkswagen Beetle|Volkswagen]] (people's car).((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=327–328, 338))

[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 101III-Reprich-012-08, Wolfschanze, Hitler, Ley, Porsche und Göring.jpg|right|thumb| (from left) Hitler; [[Robert Ley]], head of the [[German Labour Front]]; [[Ferdinand Porsche]], armaments manufacturer; and [[Hermann Göring]], head of the [[Four Year Plan]] (1942)|alt=]]

Six million people were unemployed when the Nazis took power in 1933 and by 1937 there were fewer than a million.((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=328, 333)) This was in part due to the removal of women from the workforce.((sfn|Evans|2005|p=331)) Real wages dropped by 25 per cent between 1933 and 1938.((sfn|DeLong|1997)) After the dissolution of the trade unions in May 1933, their funds were seized and their leadership arrested,((sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=289)) including those who attempted to co-operate with the Nazis.((sfn|Shirer|1960|p=202)) A new organisation, the [[German Labour Front]], was created and placed under Nazi Party functionary [[Robert Ley]].((sfn|Kershaw|2008|p=289)) The average work week was 43 hours in 1933; by 1939 this increased to 47 hours.((sfn|McNab|2009|pp=54, 71))

By early 1934, the focus shifted towards rearmament. By 1935, military expenditures accounted for 73 per cent of the government's purchases of goods and services.((sfn|Tooze|2006|pp=61–62)) On 18 October 1936, Hitler named Göring as [[Plenipotentiary]] of the Four Year Plan, intended to speed up rearmament.((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=357–360)) In addition to calling for the rapid construction of steel mills, synthetic rubber plants, and other factories, Göring instituted [[wage and price controls]] and restricted the issuance of [[stock dividend]]s.((sfn|DeLong|1997)) Large expenditures were made on rearmament in spite of growing deficits.((sfn|Evans|2005|p=360)) Plans unveiled in late 1938 for massive increases to the navy and air force were impossible to fulfil, as Germany lacked the finances and material resources to build the planned units, as well as the necessary fuel required to keep them running.((sfn|Tooze|2006|p=294)) With the introduction of compulsory military service in 1935, the ''Reichswehr'', which had been limited to 100,000 by the terms of the Versailles Treaty, expanded to 750,000 on active service at the start of World War II, with a million more in the reserve.((sfn|Evans|2005|pp=141–142)) By January 1939, unemployment was down to 301,800 and it dropped to only 77,500 by September.((sfn|McNab|2009|p=59))

After triumphing in economic success, the Nazis started a hostile foreign expansion policy. They first sent troops to occupy the demilitarized [[Rhineland]] in 1936, then annexed [[Austria]] and [[Sudetenland]] of [[Czechoslovakia]] in 1938. In 1939, they further annexed the Czech part of Czechoslovakia and founded the [[Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia]], and annexed the [[Lithuania]]n port city of [[Klaipėda]]. The Slovak part of Czechoslovakia declared independence under German support and the [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] is established.

World War II broke out in 1939, when [[Invasion of Poland|Germany invaded Poland with the Soviet Union]]. After occupying [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], Germany started the conquest of Europe, and occupied [[German occupation of Belgium during World War II|Belgium]], [[German occupation of Luxembourg during World War II|Luxembourg]], [[Netherlands]], [[Denmark]], [[German occupation of Norway|Norway]], France and the [[German occupation of the Channel Islands|British Channel Islands]] in 1940, [[German occupation of Estonia during World War II|Estonia]], [[German occupation of Latvia during World War II|Latvia]], [[German occupation of Lithuania during World War II|Lithuania]], [[Axis occupation of Greece|Greece]] and [[Yugoslavia]] in 1941, [[Italy]], [[German occupation of Albania|Albania]], [[German-occupied territory of Montenegro|Montenegro]] and [[Invasion and occupation of Monaco during World War II|Monaco]] in 1943, and [[Operation Margarethe|Hungary]] in 1944. The [[Vichy France|French government]] continued to operate after the defeat, but was actually a client state of Germany.

Nazi Germany [[Operation Barbarossa|invaded the Soviet Union]] in 1941, only to face defeat. This marks the start of the collapse of the German Reich. On [[Victory in Europe Day|8 May 1945]], Nazi Germany officially surrendered and marks the end of the Nazi Regime.

=== United States ===
[[File:American_Empire1.PNG|thumb|[[United States]] territory at its largest]]
[[File:Statue of Liberty.JPG|thumb|The [[Statue of Liberty]], a symbol of [[Culture of the United States|American culture]] ]]

The [[United States of America]] has exercised and continues to exercise worldwide economic, cultural, and military influence.

Founded in 1776 by thirteen coastal colonies that [[United States Declaration of Independence|declared their independence from Great Britain]], the United States began its [[Expansion of the United States|western expansion]] following the end of the [[American Revolutionary War]] and the recognition of U.S. sovereignty in the [[1783 Treaty of Paris]]. The treaty bequeathed to the nascent republic all land between the [[Appalachian Mountains]] and the [[Mississippi River]], and Americans began migrating there in large numbers at the end of the 18th Century, resulting in the displacement of Native American cultures, often through native peoples' forcible deportation and violent wars of eviction. These efforts at expansion were greatly strengthened by the 1787 [[Constitutional Convention (United States)|Constitutional Convention]], which resulted in the ratification of the [[United States Constitution]] and transformed the U.S. from a loose confederation of semi-autonomous states into a federal entity with a strong national core. In 1803, the United States [[Louisiana Purchase|acquired Louisiana from France]], doubling the country's size and extending its borders to the [[Rocky Mountains]].

American power and population grew rapidly, so that by 1823 President [[James Monroe]] felt confident enough to issue his [[Monroe Doctrine]], which proclaimed the Americas as the express sphere of the United States and threatened military action against any European power that attempted to make advances in the area. This was the beginning of the U.S.'s emergence as a [[regional power]] in North America. That process was confirmed in the [[Mexican–American War]] of 1846–1848, in which the United States, following a skirmish between Mexican and U.S. forces in land disputed between Mexico and the U.S., invaded Mexico. The war, which included the deployment of U.S. forces into Mexico, the [[Battle of Veracruz|taking of Veracruz by sea]], and the occupation of Mexico City by American troops (which finally resulted in Mexico's defeat), stunned much of the world. In the peace treaty ([[Treaty of Guadelupe Hidalgo]]) that followed, the U.S. [[Mexican Cession|annexed the northern half of Mexico]], comprising what is now the [[Southwestern United States]]. During the course of the war, the United States also [[Oregon Treaty|negotiated by treaty]] the acquisition of the Oregon Territory's southern half from [[Great Britain]]. In 1867, [[William H. Seward]], the [[U.S. Secretary of State]], negotiated the purchase of [[Alaska]] from the [[Russian Empire]]. The United States defeated [[Spain]] in the [[Spanish–American War]] in 1898, and gained the possessions of [[Cuba]], [[Puerto Rico]], and the [[Philippines]]. The territory of [[Hawaii]] was also acquired in 1898. The United States became a major [[Allies of World War I|victorious]] [[Allies of World War II|power]] in both World Wars, and became a major economic power after [[World War I]] tires out the European powers.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://eu.boell.org/en/2014/06/02/impact-first-world-war-and-its-implications-europe-today|title=The Impact of the First World War and Its Implications for Europe Today &#124; Heinrich Böll Stiftung &#124; Brussels office - European Union|website=Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung))</ref>

=== Russian Empire and Soviet Union ===
((Main article|Russian Empire|Soviet Union))
[[File:Russian Empire (1867).svg|thumb|[[Russian Empire]] (green) as of 1866, at the time of the maximum territorial expansion of the empire<ref>After 1866, Alaska was sold and South Sakhalin lost to Japan, but Batum, Kars, Pamir, and the Transcaspian region (Turkmenistan) were acquired. The map incorrectly shows Tuva in dark green, although in reality the protectorate over Tuva was only established in 1914.</ref>]]

The Russian Empire as a state, existed from 1721 until it was declared a [[republic]] 1 September 1917. The Russian Empire was the successor to the [[Tsardom of Russia]] and the predecessor of the Soviet Union. It was one of the largest empires in world history, surpassed in landmass only by the British and [[Mongol Empire|Mongolian empires]]: at one point in 1866, it stretched from [[Northern Europe]] across Asia and into [[North America]].

At the beginning of the 19th century the Russian Empire extended from the [[Arctic Ocean]] in the north to the [[Black Sea]] on the south, from the [[Baltic Sea]] on the west to the [[Pacific Ocean]] on the east. With 125.6 million subjects registered by the 1897 census, it had the third largest population of the world at the time, after Qing China and the British Empire. Like all empires it represented a large disparity in economic, ethnic, and religious positions. Its government, ruled by the [[Emperor of all the Russias|Emperor]], was one of the last [[Absolute monarchy|absolute monarchies]] in Europe. Prior to the outbreak of [[World War I]] in August 1914 Russia was one of the five major Great Powers of Europe.<ref>Iver B. Neumann, "Russia as a great power, 1815–2007." ''Journal of International Relations and Development'' 11.2 (2008): 128–151. [https://link.springer.com/article/10.1057/jird.2008.7 online]</ref>

[[File:Warsaw_Pact_in_1990_(orthographic_projection).svg|thumb|The [[Warsaw Pact]], a [[Collective security#Collective defense|collective defense]] treaty signed in [[Warsaw]], [[Polish People's Republic|Poland]], between the [[Soviet Union]] and seven other [[Eastern Bloc]] [[List of socialist states|socialist republics]] of [[Central and Eastern Europe]] in May 1955, during the [[Cold War]]]]

Following the [[October Revolution]] that overthrew the Russian Republic, the [[Soviet Union]] was established by the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]]. The Soviet Union began to resemble the old Russian Empire in landmass, with its territory stretching from [[Eastern Europe]] to [[Siberia]], and from Northern Europe to [[Central Asia]].

After the death of the first Soviet leader, [[Vladimir Lenin]], in 1924, [[Joseph Stalin]] eventually won a power struggle and led the country through a large-scale industrialization with a command economy and political repression. On 23 August 1939, after unsuccessful efforts to form an anti-fascist alliance with Western powers, the Soviets signed the [[Molotov–Ribbentrop Pact|non-aggression agreement with Nazi Germany]]. After the [[Invasion of Poland|start of World War II]], the formally neutral Soviets invaded and annexed territories of several Central and Eastern European states, including eastern [[Soviet invasion of Poland|Poland]], the [[Soviet occupation of the Baltic states|Baltic states]], [[Soviet occupation of Bessarabia and Northern Bukovina|northeastern Romania]] and [[Winter War|eastern Finland]].

In June 1941 the [[Operation Barbarossa|Germans invaded]], opening [[Eastern Front (World War II)|the largest and bloodiest theater of war]] in history. [[World War II casualties of the Soviet Union|Soviet war casualties]] accounted for the majority of Allied casualties of the conflict in the process of acquiring the upper hand over [[Axis powers|Axis]] forces at intense battles such as [[Battle of Stalingrad|Stalingrad]]. Soviet forces eventually [[Battle of Berlin|captured Berlin]] and [[Victory Day (Russia)|won World War II in Europe]] on 9 May 1945. The territory overtaken by the Red Army became [[satellite state]]s of the [[Eastern Bloc]]. The [[Cold War]] emerged in 1947, where the Eastern Bloc confronted the [[Western Bloc]], which would unite in the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] in 1949.

Following [[Death and state funeral of Joseph Stalin|Stalin's death]] in 1953, a period known as [[de-Stalinization]] and the [[Khrushchev Thaw]] occurred under the leadership of [[Nikita Khrushchev]]. The country developed rapidly, as millions of peasants were moved into industrialized cities. The USSR took an early lead in the [[Space Race]] with the [[Sputnik 1|first ever satellite]] and the [[Vostok 1|first human spaceflight]] and [[Venera 7|the first probe to land on another planet]], [[Venus]]. In the 1970s, there was a brief ''[[détente]]'' of relations with the United States, but tensions resumed when the Soviet Union [[Soviet–Afghan War|deployed troops in Afghanistan]] in 1979. The war drained economic resources and was matched by an escalation of American military aid to [[Mujahideen#Afghanistan|Mujahideen]] fighters.

In the mid-1980s, the last Soviet leader, [[Mikhail Gorbachev]], sought to further reform and liberalize the economy through his policies of ''[[glasnost]]'' and ''[[perestroika]]''. The goal was to preserve the Communist Party while reversing [[Era of Stagnation|economic stagnation]]. The Cold War ended during his tenure and in 1989, [[Warsaw Pact]] countries in Eastern Europe [[Revolutions of 1989|overthrew their respective Marxist–Leninist regimes]]. Strong nationalist and separatist movements broke out across the USSR. Gorbachev initiated a [[Soviet Union referendum, 1991|referendum]]—boycotted by the Baltic republics, Armenia, Georgia, and Moldova—which resulted in the majority of participating citizens voting in favor of preserving the Union as a [[Union of Sovereign States|renewed federation]]. In August 1991, [[1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt|a coup d'état was attempted]] by Communist Party hardliners. It failed, with Russian President [[Boris Yeltsin]] playing a high-profile role in facing down the coup. The main result was the banning of the Communist Party. The republics led by Russia and Ukraine declared independence. On 25 December 1991, Gorbachev resigned. All the republics emerged from the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]] as independent [[post-Soviet states]]. The Russian Federation (formerly the Russian SFSR) assumed the Soviet Union's rights and obligations and is recognized as its continued legal personality in world affairs.

The Soviet Union produced many significant social and [[Timeline of Russian inventions and technology records|technological]] achievements and innovations regarding military power. It boasted the world's second-largest economy and the largest standing military in the world.<ref name="theodora.com">((cite web |url=http://www.theodora.com/wfb/1990/rankings/gdp_million_1.html |title=GDP – Million – Flags, Maps, Economy, Geography, Climate, Natural Resources, Current Issues, International Agreements, Population, Social Statistics, Political System | access-date=29 August 2018 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180612163518/https://www.theodora.com/wfb/1990/rankings/gdp_million_1.html | archive-date=12 June 2018 | url-status=live))</ref><ref>Scott and Scott (1979) p. 305</ref><ref>((cite web |url=https://www.ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/30-october-1961-the-tsar-bomba |title=October 30, 1961 – The Tsar Bomba: CTBTO Preparatory Commission|access-date=29 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160319201753/http://ctbto.org/specials/testing-times/30-october-1961-the-tsar-bomba/|archive-date=19 March 2016|url-status=live))</ref> The USSR was [[Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons|recognized]] as one of the five [[List of states with nuclear weapons|nuclear weapons states]]. It was a founding [[Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council|permanent member]] of the [[United Nations Security Council]] as well as a member of the [[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe|OSCE]], the [[World Federation of Trade Unions|WFTU]] and the leading member of the [[Council for Mutual Economic Assistance]] and the [[Warsaw Pact]].

Before its dissolution, the USSR had maintained its status as a world superpower alongside the United States, for four decades after World War II. Sometimes also called "[[Soviet Empire]]", it exercised its [[hegemony]] in Central and Eastern Europe and worldwide with military and economic strength, [[Proxy war|proxy conflicts]] and influence in [[Developing country|developing countries]] and funding of scientific research, especially in [[space technology]] and weaponry.<ref name="auto">((Cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/sovi.html |title=The Soviet Union and the United States – Revelations from the Russian Archives ((!)) Exhibitions – Library of Congress|date=15 June 1992|website=loc.gov|access-date=12 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915012329/http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/archives/sovi.html|archive-date=15 September 2017|url-status=live))</ref><ref name="auto2">((cite book |author1=Wheatcroft, S. G. |author2=Davies, R. W. |author3=Cooper, J. M. |pages=30–2 |title=Soviet Industrialization Reconsidered: Some Preliminary Conclusions about Economic Development between 1926 and 1941 |publisher=[[Economic History Review]] |year=1986 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m-voAAAAIAAJ |isbn=978-0-7190-4600-1 |volume=39 |issue=2))</ref>
((TOC limit|3))

=== Italian Empire ===
[[File:Italian Colonial Empire (orthographic projection).svg|thumb|Every territory ever controlled by the [[Italian Empire]] at some point in time during World War II.<br /> Kingdom of Italy (dark green), Italian colonial empire (light green) and Italian occupied territories (grey).]]
((Main article|Italian Empire))
The Italian colonial empire was created after the [[Kingdom of Italy]] joined other European powers in establishing colonies overseas during the "[[scramble for Africa]]". Modern Italy as a [[Italian unification|unified state]] only existed from 1861. By this time [[French Colonial Empire|France]], [[Spanish Empire|Spain]], [[Portuguese Empire|Portugal]], [[British Empire|Britain]], and the [[Dutch Empire|Netherlands]], had already carved out large empires over several hundred years. One of the last remaining areas open to colonisation was on the African continent.<ref>Giuseppe Finaldi, ''A History of Italian Colonialism, 1860–1907: Europe's Last Empire'' (Routledge, 2016).</ref><ref>Angelo Del Boca, "The myths, suppressions, denials, and defaults of Italian colonialism." in Patrizia Palumbo, ed. ''A place in the sun: Africa in Italian colonial culture from post-unification to the present'' (2003): 17–36.</ref>

By the outbreak of [[World War I]] in 1914, Italy had annexed [[Italian Eritrea|Eritrea]] and [[Italian Somalia|Somalia]], and had wrested control of portions of the [[Ottoman Empire]], including [[Libya]], though it was defeated in its attempt to conquer [[Ethiopia]]. The [[Italian Fascism|Fascist regime]] under Italian dictator [[Benito Mussolini]] which came to power in 1922 sought to increase the size of the empire further. Ethiopia was successfully taken, four decades after the previous failure, and Italy's European borders were expanded. An official "Italian Empire" was proclaimed on 9 May 1936 following the conquest of Ethiopia.<ref name="Lowe, p.289">Lowe, p.289</ref>

Italy sided with [[Nazi Germany]] during World War II but Britain soon captured Italian overseas colonies. By the time Italy itself was invaded in 1943, its empire had ceased to exist. On 8 September 1943 the Fascist regime of Mussolini collapsed, and a [[Italian Civil War|Civil War]] broke out between [[Italian Social Republic]] and [[Italian Resistance Movement]], supported by Allied forces.

=== Empire of Japan ===
[[File:Japanese Empire (orthographic projection).svg|thumb|The [[Japanese Empire|Empire of Japan]] in 1942. The empire until 1905 is in dark green, acquisitions until 1930 are in lighter green, and occupied/conceded territories are in the lightest green.]]
((Main article|Empire of Japan))
The Empire of [[Japan]], officially the Empire of Great Japan or simply Great Japan (Dai Nippon), was an empire that existed from the [[Meiji Restoration]] on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan on 3 May 1947.

Imperial Japan's rapid [[industrialization]] and [[militarization]] under the slogan [[Fukoku Kyōhei]] (富国強兵, "Enrich the Country, Strengthen the Army") led to its emergence as a great power, eventually culminating in its membership in the [[Axis alliance]] and the conquest of a large part of the Asia-Pacific region. At the height of its power in 1942, the Japanese Empire ruled over a geographic area spanning ((convert|((#expr:7400000))|km2|sqmi|abbr=on|sigfig=5)). This made it the 12th [[List of largest empires|largest empire]] in history.<ref name="Conrad">((Cite journal|last=Conrad|first=Sebastian|date=2014|title=The Dialectics of Remembrance: Memories of Empire in Cold War Japan|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/199424523.pdf|url-status=live|journal=[[Comparative Studies in Society and History]]|volume=56|issue=1|pages=8|doi=10.1017/S0010417513000601|issn=0010-4175|jstor=43908281|s2cid=146284542|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200708000924/https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/199424523.pdf|archive-date=8 July 2020|access-date=7 July 2020|quote=In 1942, at the moment of its greatest extension, the empire encompassed territories spanning over 7,400,000 square kilometers.))</ref>

In August 1914, former President of the United States [[William Howard Taft]] listed Japan and his country as the only two great powers uninvolved in World War I.<ref name="taft19140810">((Cite magazine |last=Taft |first=William Howard |date=10 August 1914 |title=A Message to the People of the United States |url=https://archive.org/details/independen79v80newy/page/n203/mode/1up?view=theater |magazine=The Independent |pages=198–199 |access-date=17 May 2022))</ref> After winning wars against China ([[First Sino-Japanese War]], 1894–95) and Russia ([[Russo-Japanese War]], 1904–05) the Japanese Empire was considered to be one of the major powers worldwide. The maximum extent of the empire was gained during [[Second World War]], when Japan conquered many Asian and Pacific countries (see [[Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere]]).

After suffering many defeats and the [[atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]], however, the Empire of Japan surrendered to the Allies on 2 September 1945. A period of occupation by the Allies followed the surrender, and a new constitution was created with American involvement. The constitution came into force on 3 May 1947, officially dissolving the Empire. American occupation and reconstruction of the country continued well into the 1950s, eventually forming the current nation-state whose title is simply that ("the nation of Japan" Nippon-koku) or just "Japan".

== Post–Cold War era great powers ==
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=== United States ===
((Main|United States|Pax Americana|American Century))

[[File:NATO partnerships.svg|thumb|[[NATO]] members and their partners (NATO is a military alliance which the United States is part of.)((legend|#004990|outline=black|[[Member states of NATO|NATO members]]))((legend|#2a7fff|outline=black|[[Membership Action Plan]]))((legend|#88b7ff|outline=black|Enhanced Opportunities Partners))((legend|#ffd900|outline=black|[[Individual Partnership Action Plan]]))((legend|#ff7826|outline=black|[[Partnership for Peace]]))((legend|#d40000|outline=black|[[Mediterranean Dialogue]]))((legend|#cc00ff|outline=black|[[Istanbul Cooperation Initiative]]))((legend|#008000|outline=black|Global Partners))]]

The United States was the foremost of the world's two [[superpower]]s during the [[Cold War]]. After the Cold War, the most common belief held that only the United States fulfilled the criteria to be considered a superpower.<ref name="Paper for presentation at the biennial meetings of the South African Political Studies Association Saldanha, Western Cape 29 June – 2 July 1999">((cite web|url=http://post.queensu.ca/~nossalk/papers/hyperpower.htm|title=Analyzing American Power in the Post-Cold War Era|access-date=28 February 2007| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20070311021450/http://post.queensu.ca/~nossalk/papers/hyperpower.htm| archive-date= 11 March 2007 | url-status= live))</ref> Its geographic area composed the [[List of countries and dependencies by area|third or fourth-largest state in the world]], with an area of approximately 9.37 million km<sup>2</sup>.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.theodora.com/wfb1989/united_states/united_states_geography.html|title=United States Geography 1989 - Flags, Maps, Economy, Geography, Climate, Natural Resources, Current Issues, International Agreements, Population, Social Statistics, Political System|website=www.theodora.com))</ref> The population of the US was 248.7 million in 1990, at that time the fourth-largest nation.<ref>[https://www.census.gov/population/censusdata/table-2.pdf US Census] census.gov</ref>

In the mid-to-late 20th century, the political status of the US was defined as a strongly capitalist federation and constitutional republic. It had a permanent seat on the [[United Nations Security Council]] plus two allies with permanent seats, the [[United Kingdom–United States relations|United Kingdom]] and [[France–United States relations|France]]. The US had strong ties with [[European single market|capitalist Europe]], [[Latin America]], the [[British Commonwealth]], and several East Asian countries ([[South Korea–United States relations|South Korea]], [[Republic of China–United States relations|Taiwan]], [[Japan–United States relations|Japan]]). It allied itself with both [[right-wing dictatorship]]s and [[Democracy|democracies]].<ref>((cite book|author=Stephen Kinzer |title=Overthrow: America's Century of Regime Change from Hawaii to Iraq |url=https://archive.org/details/overthrow00step |url-access=registration |publisher=Times Books |year=2007|isbn=9780805082401 ))</ref>

The political and economic force of the United States is also a major driving force of its power. Many [[State (polity)|states]] around the world would, over the course of the 20th century, adopt the economic policies of the [[Washington Consensus]], sometimes against the wishes of their populations. The United States is a highly [[developed country]], and its economy accounts for approximately a quarter of global [[gross domestic product|GDP]] and is the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|largest]] by GDP at market exchange rates. By value, the United States is the world's [[List of countries by imports|largest]] importer and [[List of countries by exports|second-largest]] exporter. Although it accounts for just over 4.2% of the world's total population, the U.S. holds [[List of countries by total wealth|over 30%]] of the total wealth in the world, the largest share held by any country. The US has large resources of minerals, energy resources, metals, and timber, a large and modernized farming industry and a large industrial base. The United States dollar is the dominant world [[reserve currency]] under the [[Bretton Woods system]]. US systems were rooted in capitalist economic theory based on supply and demand, that is, production determined by customers' demands. America was allied with the [[G7]] major economies. US economic policy prescriptions were the "standard" reform packages promoted for [[Economic crisis|crisis-wracked]] [[developing country|developing countries]] by Washington, DC-based international institutions such as the [[International Monetary Fund]] (IMF), [[World Bank]], as well as the [[US Treasury Department]].<ref>Williamson, John: [http://www.iie.com/publications/papers/paper.cfm?researchid=486 What Washington Means by Policy Reform] ((webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090625085003/http://www.iie.com/publications/papers/paper.cfm?ResearchID=486 |date=25 June 2009 )), in: Williamson, John (ed.): ''Latin American Readjustment: How Much has Happened'', Washington: Institute for International Economics 1989.</ref>

[[File:American bases worldwide.svg|thumb|right|[[List of United States military bases|Countries with United States military bases]], as of 2016]]
The [[military of the United States]] is a naval-based advanced military with by far the [[List of countries by military expenditures|highest military expenditure]] in the world.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/spending.htm|title=World Wide Military Expenditures|website=www.globalsecurity.org))</ref> The [[United States Navy]] is the world's largest navy, with the largest number of [[aircraft carrier]]s, bases all over the world (particularly in an incomplete "ring" bordering the [[Warsaw Pact]] states to the west, south and east). The US had the largest [[nuclear arsenal]] in the world during the first half of the Cold War, one of the largest armies in the world and one of the two largest air forces in the world. Its powerful military allies in Western Europe (the [[North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] states) had their own nuclear capabilities. The US also possessed a powerful global intelligence network in the [[Central Intelligence Agency]].

The cultural impact of the US, often known as [[Americanization]], is seen in the influence on other countries of US music, TV, films, art, and fashion, as well as the desire for [[freedom of speech]] and other guaranteed rights its residents enjoy. Various styles of music born in the US have become globally influential.<ref>Biddle, Julian (2001). ''What Was Hot!: Five Decades of Pop Culture in America''. New York: Citadel, p. ix. ((ISBN|0-8065-2311-5)).</ref>

The [[United States]] emerged as the world's sole [[superpower]] following the dissolution of the [[Soviet Union]] after the conclusion of the [[cold war]]. This was followed by a period where the [[United States]] was seen as in its greatest by the majority of the population inside of the [[United States]]. This led to a period of absolute dominance by the [[United States of America]], stretching from 1993 to 2001. The [[War on Terrorism]], the response to the [[Great Recession]] and the [[COVID-19 pandemic in the United States]] were all seen to damage the credibility of the United States.<ref>((Cite web|title=In Depth: Topics A to Z, Iraq|url=http://www.news.gallup.com/poll/1633/iraq|access-date=29 July 2021|website=news.gallup.com|language=en))((Dead link|date=June 2022 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes ))</ref>

In March 2003, the United States led an [[Multi-National Force – Iraq|international coalition]] to [[2003 invasion of Iraq|invade Iraq]] because [[Saddam Hussein]], then-[[President of Iraq]], refused to cooperate with [[UN]] weapons inspectors seeking to verify that Iraq had dismantled [[Iraq and weapons of mass destruction|its weapons of mass destruction]] capabilities. After a month of combat with Iraqi military and paramilitary units, the [[Battle of Baghdad (2003)|Battle of Baghdad]] was won by coalition forces, though an [[Iraqi insurgency (2003–2011)|insurgency]] would soon emerge, greatly prolonging the [[Occupation of Iraq (2003–2011)|American military presence in Iraq]].

In 2011, the U.S. had 10 major strengths according to Chinese scholar Peng Yuan, the director of the Institute of American Studies of the China Institutes for Contemporary International Studies. He noted that the United States had a sizable population (300 million), enjoys its position as a two-ocean power, and has abundant natural resources. Besides, he believed that the [[United States Armed Forces|United States' military muscle]], high technology, [[Education in the United States|fair education system]], [[Culture of the United States|cultural power]], cyber power, [[NATO|allies]] (as the United States has more allies than any other state), global force projection, intelligence capabilities (as demonstrated by the killing of [[Osama bin Laden]]), intellectual [[think tank]]s and research institutes, and strategic power (as the US is the world's only country with a truly global strategy) lead the United States into the superpower status it now enjoys. However, he noted that the recent breakdown of bipartisanship in the US, economic slowdown, intractable deficits and rising debt, societal polarization, and the weakening of US institutional power since the US can no longer dominate global institutions, are the current flaws of the United States' power.<ref>Quoted in Josef Joffe, ''The Myth of America's Decline: Politics, Economics, and a Half Century of False Prophecies'' (2014) ch. 7.</ref>

=== China ===
((Main|Chinese Century))
((Further|China's peaceful rise|Pax Sinica|Potential superpowers#China))
[[File:Belt_and_Road_Initiative_participant_map.svg|thumb|Countries which signed cooperation documents related to the [[Belt and Road Initiative]], which is a global infrastructure [[Economic development|development]] strategy adopted by the [[Government of China|Chinese government]] in 2013 to invest in nearly 150 countries and international organizations]]
[[Republic of China (1912–1949)|China]] became a [[recognized country at world level]] during [[World War II]] as one of the [[Four Policemen]] and principal [[Allies of World War II]].<ref>((Cite journal |last=VAN ALSTYNE |first=RICHARD W. |title=The United States and Russia in World War Ii: Part I |date=1950 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/45307844 |journal=Current History |volume=19 |issue=111 |pages=257–260 |doi=10.1525/curh.1950.19.111.257 |jstor=45307844 |s2cid=249683657 |issn=0011-3530))</ref><ref>((Cite book |last1=Doenecke |first1=Justus D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xdMF9rX6mX8C&pg=PA62 |title=Debating Franklin D. Roosevelt's Foreign Policies, 1933–1945 |last2=Stoler |first2=Mark A. |date=2005 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-8476-9416-7 |pages=62 |language=en |quote=THE FOUR POLICEMEN AND CHINA POLICY in turning to the wider issue of the entire postwar order, one notes that by 1942 FDR saw four great powers as the major guarantors of the peace. In order of importance, they were the United States, the Soviet Union, China, and Britain.))</ref> After the [[Korean War|Korean war]] in 1950–1953 and the [[Sino-Soviet split]] in the 1960s, the [[People's Republic of China]] emerged as one of the three big players in the tri-polar geopolitics (PRC-US-USSR) during the late Cold war (1956–1991) with its status as a [[List of states with nuclear weapons|recognized nuclear weapons state]] in the 1960s.<ref>((Cite journal |last=Clubb |first=O. Edmund |date=1 January 1964 |title=Living with China as a Great Power |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/000271626435100116 |journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science |language=en |volume=351 |issue=1 |pages=140–147 |doi=10.1177/000271626435100116 |s2cid=154986216 |issn=0002-7162))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Less Revolution, More Realpolitik: China's Foreign Policy in the Early and Middle 1970s ((!)) Wilson Center |url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/publication/less-revolution-more-realpolitik-chinas-foreign-policy-early-and-middle-1970s |access-date=21 August 2022 |website=wilsoncenter.org |language=en))</ref> Currently, China has the world's second largest population, after India, second [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|largest GDP (nominal)]] (after the U.S.) and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|largest economy in the world by PPP]].<ref name=":02">((Cite web |last=Lemahieu |first=Herve |title=Five big takeaways from the 2019 Asia Power Index |url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/power-shifts-fevered-times-2019-asia-power-index |access-date=6 May 2020 |website=[[Lowy Institute]] |language=en |quote=China, the emerging superpower, netted the highest gains in overall power in 2019, ranking first in half of the eight Index measures. For the first time, China narrowly edged out the United States in the Index's assessment of economic resources. In absolute terms China's economy grew by more than the total size of Australia's economy in 2018. The world's largest trading nation has also paradoxically seen its GDP become less dependent on exports. This makes China less vulnerable to an escalating trade war than most other Asian economies. |archive-date=24 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724203232/https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/power-shifts-fevered-times-2019-asia-power-index |url-status=dead ))</ref><ref>((Cite book |last1=Huhua |first1=Cao |title=Facing China as a New Global Superpower |last2=Jeremy |first2=Paltiel |publisher=[[Springer Publishing|Springer]] |year=2016 |isbn=978-981-287-823-6 |location=Singapore |pages=XI, 279 |doi=10.1007/978-981-287-823-6))</ref> China created the [[Belt and Road Initiative]] which according to analysts has been a [[Geostrategy|geostrategic]] effort to take a more significant role in global affairs and challenge [[liberal international order|US post-war hegemony]].<ref name="China OBOR Transform">((cite web|title=China's one belt, one road initiative set to transform economy by connecting with trading partners along ancient Silk Road|date=21 June 2016|url=http://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1978450/chinas-one-belt-one-road-initiative-set-transform-economy|work=[[South China Morning Post]]|access-date=7 January 2017|archive-date=7 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170107172637/http://www.scmp.com/business/china-business/article/1978450/chinas-one-belt-one-road-initiative-set-transform-economy|url-status=live))</ref><ref name="caixin100761304">((cite web|url=http://english.caixin.com/2014-12-10/100761304.html|title=One Belt, One Road|date=10 December 2014|publisher=Caixin Online|access-date=13 April 2016|archive-date=12 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160912022038/http://english.caixin.com/2014-12-10/100761304.html|url-status=live))</ref><ref>((Cite web|title=What Does China's Belt and Road Initiative Mean for US Grand Strategy?|url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/06/what-does-chinas-belt-and-road-initiative-mean-for-us-grand-strategy/|access-date=24 July 2021|website=thediplomat.com|language=en-US))</ref> It has also been argued that China co-founded the [[Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank]] and [[New Development Bank]] to compete with the [[World Bank]] and the [[International Monetary Fund]] in [[development finance]].<ref name="AIIB NDB">((cite web|title=AIIB Vs. NDB: Can New Players Change the Rules of Development Financing?|url=http://english.caixin.com/2016-09-08/100986629.html|publisher=[[Caixin]]|access-date=26 December 2016|archive-date=26 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161226055140/http://english.caixin.com/2016-09-08/100986629.html|url-status=live))</ref><ref name="Global Economy">((cite book| title=Global Political Economy: Theory and Practice|last=Cohn |first=Theodore H. | publisher=Routledge| isbn=9781317334811|date=5 May 2016 ))</ref> In 2015, China launched the [[Made in China 2025]] strategic plan to further develop its manufacturing sector. There have been debates on the effectiveness and practicality of these programs in promoting China's global status.

According to ''[[The Economist]]'', on a purchasing-power-parity <small>(PPP)</small> basis, the Chinese economy became the world's largest in 2013.<ref>((Cite news|date=27 October 2018|title=The Chinese century is well under way|newspaper=The Economist|url=https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2018/10/27/the-chinese-century-is-well-under-way|access-date=24 July 2021|issn=0013-0613))</ref> On a [[foreign exchange]] rate basis, some estimates in 2020 and early 2021 said that China could overtake the U.S. in 2028,<ref>((cite web|last=Elliot|first=Larry|date=26 December 2020|title=China to overtake US as world's biggest economy by 2028, report predicts|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/dec/26/china-to-overtake-us-as-worlds-biggest-economy-by-2028-report-predicts|access-date=28 December 2020|work=[[The Guardian]]|quote="With the US expected to contract by 5% this year, China will narrow the gap with its biggest rival, the [[Centre for Economics and Business Research|CEBR]] said. Overall, global gross domestic product is forecast to decline by 4.4% this year, in the biggest one-year fall since the second world war. [[Douglas McWilliams]], the CEBR's deputy chairman, said: "The big news in this forecast is the speed of growth of the Chinese economy. We expect it to become an upper-income economy during the current five-year plan period (2020–25). And we expect it to overtake the US a full five years earlier than we did a year ago. It would pass the per capita threshold of $12,536 (£9,215) to become a high-income country by 2023."))</ref> or 2026 if the [[renminbi|Chinese currency]] further strengthened.<ref name="cnbc_Newc">((Cite web |title=New chart shows China could overtake the U.S. as the world's largest economy earlier than expected |last1=Cheng |first1=Evelyn |last2=Lee |first2=Yen Nee |work=CNBC |date=February 2021 |access-date=24 July 2021 |url= https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/01/new-chart-shows-china-gdp-could-overtake-us-sooner-as-covid-took-its-toll.html |quote=could ))</ref> As of July 2021, [[Bloomberg L.P.]] analysts estimated that China may either overtake the U.S. to become the world's biggest economy in the 2030s or never be able to reach such a goal.<ref name="bloo_When_Will">((Cite web |title=When Will China Rule the World? Maybe Never |last1=Zhu |first1=Eric |last2=Orlik |first2=Tom |website=[[Bloomberg News]] |agency=[[Bloomberg News]] |date=5 July 2021 |access-date=6 July 2021 |url= https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2021-07-05/when-will-china-s-economy-beat-the-u-s-to-become-no-1-why-it-may-never-happen))</ref>

The nation receives continual coverage in the popular press of its emerging superpower status,<ref>((cite web |url = http://edition.cnn.com/SPECIALS/1999/china.50/asian.superpower/ |title = Visions of China – Asian Superpower |publisher = CNN|year = 1999 |access-date=19 July 2014 ))</ref><ref>((cite web |url = https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/01/china-military-presence-superpower-collision-japan |title = China's military presence is growing. Does a superpower collision loom? |website = The Guardian |date=1 January 2014 |access-date=19 July 2014 ))</ref><ref>((cite journal|author=Cordesman, Anthony|date=1 October 2019|title=China and the United States: Cooperation, Competition, and/or Conflict|url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/china-and-united-states-cooperation-competition-andor-conflict|access-date=22 March 2021|journal=Center for Strategic and International Studies|quote=Seen from this perspective, such trends clearly that show that China already is a true economic superpower with growing resources and a steadily improving technology base. Its military structure is evolving to the point where China can compare or compete with the U.S. – at least in Asia.))</ref><ref>((cite web|author1=Silver, Laura|author2=Devlin, Kat|author3=Huang, Christine|date=5 December 2019|title=China's Economic Growth Mostly Welcomed in Emerging Markets, but Neighbors Wary of Its Influence|url=https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2019/12/05/chinas-economic-growth-mostly-welcomed-in-emerging-markets-but-neighbors-wary-of-its-influence/|access-date=22 March 2021|work=Pew Research Center|quote=China has emerged as a global economic superpower in recent decades. It is not only the world's second largest economy and the largest exporter by value, but it has also been investing in overseas infrastructure and development at a rapid clip))</ref><ref name="CNN_naval">((cite news|author=Lendon, Brad|date=5 March 2021|title=China has built the world's largest navy. Now what's Beijing going to do with it?|publisher=CNN|url=https://www.cnn.com/2021/03/05/china/china-world-biggest-navy-intl-hnk-ml-dst/index.html|access-date=22 March 2021|quote=In 2018, China held 40% of the world's shipbuilding market by gross tons, according to United Nations figures cited by the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, well ahead of second place South Korea at 25%. Put in a historical perspective, China's shipbuilding numbers are staggering – dwarfing even the U.S. efforts of World War II. China built more ships in one year of peace time (2019) than the U.S. did in four of war (1941–1945).))</ref><ref>((cite web|author=Lemahieu, Herve|date=29 May 2019|title=Five big takeaways from the 2019 Asia Power Index|url=https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/power-shifts-fevered-times-2019-asia-power-index|access-date=22 March 2021|publisher=Lowy Institute|quote=China, the emerging superpower, netted the highest gains in overall power in 2019, ranking first in half of the eight Index measures. For the first time, China narrowly edged out the United States in the Index's assessment of economic resources. In absolute terms China's economy grew by more than the total size of Australia's economy in 2018. The world's largest trading nation has also paradoxically seen its GDP become less dependent on exports. This makes China less vulnerable to an escalating trade war than most other Asian economies.|archive-date=24 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724203232/https://www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpreter/power-shifts-fevered-times-2019-asia-power-index|url-status=dead))</ref> and has been identified as a rising or emerging economic growth and military superpower by academics and other experts. The "rise of China" has been named the top news story of the 21st century by the [[Global Language Monitor]], as measured by the number of appearances in the global print and electronic media, on the Internet and blogosphere, and in social media.<ref>((cite web |url = http://www.ycwb.com/ePaper/xkb/html/2011-05/07/content_1105830.htm |script-title = zh:21世纪新闻排行中国崛起居首位 |trans-title = The rise of China ranked first place in 21st century news |language = zh-Hans-CN |website = Ycwb.com |date = 7 May 2011 |access-date = 10 February 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110927095901/http://www.ycwb.com/ePaper/xkb/html/2011-05/07/content_1105830.htm |archive-date = 27 September 2011 ))</ref><ref>((cite web |first = Chito | last=Romana |url = https://abcnews.go.com/International/china-replace-us-top-superpower/story?id=9986355 |title = Does China Want to Be Top Superpower? |website = Abcnews.go.com |date = 2 March 2010 |access-date = 10 February 2012))</ref><ref>((cite web |url = http://carnegieendowment.org/2006/02/09/from-rural-transformation-to-global-integration-environmental-and-social-impacts-of-china-s-rise-to-superpower/dfi |title = From Rural Transformation to Global Integration: The Environmental and Social Impacts of China's Rise to Superpower – Carnegie Endowment for International Peace |date=9 February 2006 |access-date = 10 February 2012 ))</ref><ref>((cite web |url = http://www.getabstract.com/en/summary/global-business/china-the-balance-sheet/6584/?isbn= |title = China: The Balance Sheet Summary |website = getabstract.com |year = 2006 |access-date = 19 July 2014 ))</ref><ref>((cite web |first = Merri B. |last = Uckert |url = http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/awc/uckertmb.pdf |title = China As An Economic and Military Superpower: A Dangerous Combination? |date = April 1995 |access-date = 10 February 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130115145821/http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/awc/uckertmb.pdf |archive-date = 15 January 2013 |url-status = dead ))</ref> The term "[[Second Superpower]]" has been applied by scholars to the possibility that the People's Republic of China could [[Chinese Century|emerge]] with [[Power (international relations)|global power]] and influence on par with the United States.<ref>((cite book |title=History of International Broadcasting |first=James|last=Wood |page=155 |publisher=IET |year=2000 ))</ref> The potential for the two countries to form stronger relations to address global issues is sometimes referred to as the [[Group of Two]].

[[Barry Buzan]] asserted in 2004 that "China certainly presents the most promising all-round profile" of a potential superpower.<ref name="The United States and the Great Powers">((cite book|last=Buzan|first=Barry|title=The United States and the Great Powers|publisher=Polity Press|year=2004|location=Cambridge, United Kingdom|page=70|isbn=0-7456-3375-7))</ref> Buzan claimed that "China is currently the most fashionable potential superpower and the one whose degree of alienation from the dominant international society makes it the most obvious political challenger." However, he noted this challenge is constrained by the major challenges of development and by the fact that its rise could trigger a counter-coalition of states in [[Asia]].((citation needed|date=June 2015))

[[Parag Khanna]] stated in 2008 that by making massive trade and investment deals with Latin America and Africa, China had established its presence as a superpower along with the [[European Union]] and the [[United States]]. China's rise is demonstrated by its ballooning share of trade in its [[gross domestic product]]. He believed that China's "consultative style" had allowed it to develop political and economic ties with many countries including those viewed as [[rogue state]]s by the United States. He stated that the [[Shanghai Cooperation Organisation]] founded with Russia and the Central Asian countries may eventually be the "[[NATO]] of the East".<ref>((cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/27/magazine/27world-t.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|last=Khanna|first=Parag|title=Waving Goodbye to Hegemony|date=27 January 2008 |access-date=19 July 2014))</ref>

Historian [[Timothy Garton Ash]] argued in 2011, that the [[International Monetary Fund]] predicting that China's GDP ([[purchasing power parity]] adjusted) will overtake that of the United States in 2016,((update inline|date=April 2021)) that a power shift to a world with several superpowers was happening in the early 21st century. However, China was still lacking in soft power and power projection abilities and had a low [[Per capita income|GDP/person]]. The article also stated that the [[Pew Research Center]] in a 2009 survey found that people in 15 out of 22 countries believed that China had or would overtake the US as the world's leading superpower.<ref>((cite web|url=http://english.caixin.com/2012-02-27/100360946.html|publisher=[[Caixin]]|title=Oxford Prof on China and the New World OrderPart 1|date=27 February 2012|access-date=19 July 2014))</ref>

In an interview given in 2011, Singapore's first [[President of Singapore|premier]], [[Lee Kuan Yew]], stated that while China supplanting the United States is not a foregone conclusion, [[Paramount leader|Chinese leaders]] are nonetheless serious about displacing the United States as the most powerful country in Asia. "They have transformed a poor society by an economic miracle to become now the second-largest economy in the world. How could they not aspire to be number 1 in Asia, and in time the world?"<ref name="LeeAllison2013">((cite book|author1=Kuan Yew Lee|author2=Graham Allison|author3=Robert D. Blackwill|author4=Ali Wyne|title=Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=geiCymK1IWIC&pg=PA2|access-date=11 December 2015|date=1 February 2013|publisher=MIT Press|isbn=978-0-262-01912-5|page=2|chapter=Future of China))</ref> The Chinese strategy, Lee maintains, will revolve around their "huge and increasingly highly skilled and educated workers to out-sell and out-build all others".<ref name="Allison 2012 4">((cite book| last=Allison| first=Graham and Robert D. Blackwill, with Ali Wyne| title=Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World| year=2012| publisher=The MIT Press| location=Cambridge Massachusetts| isbn=978-0-262-01912-5| page=4| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=geiCymK1IWIC))</ref> Nevertheless, relations with the United States, at least in the medium term, will not take a turn for the worse because China will "avoid any action that will sour up relations with the U.S. To challenge a stronger and technologically superior power like the U.S. will abort their 'peaceful rise.'"<ref name="Allison 2012 4"/> Though Lee believes China is genuinely interested in growing within the global framework the United States has created, it is biding its time until it becomes strong enough to successfully redefine the prevailing political and economic order.<ref>((cite book|last=Allison|first=Graham and Robert D. Blackwill, with Ali Wyne|title=Lee Kuan Yew: The Grand Master's Insights on China, the United States, and the World|year=2012|publisher=The MIT Press|location=Cambridge Massachusetts|isbn=978-0-262-01912-5|page=12|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=geiCymK1IWIC))</ref>

China is thought to be becoming the world's largest economy and is making rapid progress in many areas. The United States is seen as a declining superpower as indicated by factors such as poor economic recovery, financial disorder, high deficits gaining close to GDP levels and unemployment, increasing political polarization, and overregulation forcing jobs overseas in China.<ref>((cite web|url=http://www.epi.org/publication/counting_the_jobs_lost_to_china/|title=Counting the jobs lost to China|work=Economic Policy Institute|date=31 March 2010|access-date=8 July 2014))</ref><ref>((cite web|author1=Kenneth Lieberthal|author2=Wang Jisi|url=http://www.voanews.com/content/us-china-experts-warn-of-growing-bilateral-distrust-145900615/179594.html|publisher=[[Voice of America]]|title=US, China Experts Warn of Growing Bilateral Distrust|date=2 April 2012|access-date=19 July 2014))</ref><ref>((cite web|url=http://www.brookings.edu/~/media/research/files/papers/2012/3/30-us-china-lieberthal/0330_china_lieberthal.pdf|publisher=China Center at Brookings|title=Addressing U.S.-China Strategic Distrust|date=March 2012|access-date=19 July 2014))</ref>((update inline|date=June 2021))

[[File:Tiananmen beijing Panorama.jpg|thumb|right|[[Tiananmen]], the "Gate of Heavenly Peace", is the front gate of the [[Imperial City of Beijing]], first built under the [[Yongle Emperor]] who also commissioned the ''[[Yongle Encyclopedia]]'' and the [[Ming treasure voyages]]. As a [[national symbols of China|national symbol of China]], Tiananmen features a giant portrait of Chairman [[Mao Zedong]] with two giant placards: the left one reads "Long Live the [[People's Republic of China]]" (中华人民共和国万岁; Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó wànsuì), while the right one reads "Long Live the [[Great Unity]] of the World's Peoples" (世界人民大团结万岁; Shìjiè rénmín dà tuánjié wànsuì).]]
Some consensus has concluded that China has reached the qualifications of superpower status, citing China's growing political clout and leadership in the economic sectors has given the country renewed standings in the International Community. Although China's military projection is still premature and untested, the perceived humiliation of US leadership in failing to prevent its closest allies from joining the [[Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank]],<ref name="Foreign Policy-April-1-2015">((cite magazine|author=Allen-Ebrahimian, Bethany |title=Obama Is Sitting Alone at a Bar Drinking a Consolation Beer|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2015/04/01/obama-china-bank-aiib-policy/|magazine=[[Foreign Policy]]|date=1 April 2015))</ref> along with the [[Belt and Road Initiative]] and China's role in the [[Boeing 737 MAX groundings|worldwide groundings of the Boeing 737 MAX]],<ref name="Boeing's Crisis Strengthens Beijing's Hand-March-20-2019">((cite magazine|author=Aboulafia, Richard |title=Boeing's Crisis Strengthens Beijing's Hand|url=https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/03/20/boeings-crisis-strengthens-beijings-hand-737max-faa-caac-aviation-regulators-trade-war-china-xi-trump/|magazine=[[Foreign Policy]]|date=20 March 2019))</ref> was seen as a [[paradigm shift]] or an [[inflection point]] to the [[Polarity (international relations)#Unipolarity|unipolar world order]] that dominated post-Cold War international relations. University Professor Øystein Tunsjø argues that competition between China and the USA will increase, leading to the gap between them decreasing, while the gap between the two countries and the rest of the top ten largest economies will widen.<ref name="Columbia University Press-February-2018">((Cite book|author=Tunsjø, Øystein |title=The Return of Bipolarity in World Politics: China, the United States, and Geostructural Realism|url=https://cup.columbia.edu/book/the-return-of-bipolarity-in-world-politics/9780231176545|publisher=[[Columbia University Press]]|date=27 February 2018|isbn=9780231546904))</ref> Additionally, economics correspondent, [[Peter S. Goodman]] and Beijing Bureau Chief of China, [[Jane Perlez]] further stated that China is using a combination of its economic might and growing military advancements to pressure, coerce and change the current world order to accommodate China's interests at the expense of the United States and its allies.<ref name="The New York Times-November-25-2018">((cite news|author1=Goodman, Peter |author2=Perlez, Jane |title=Beijing is leveraging its commercial and military might to redraw the terms of trade, diplomacy and security, challenging the liberal democratic order.|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/11/25/world/asia/china-world-power.html?mtrref=www.google.com&gwh=9DD0254E4F46A3D7C0FD201DDFA1E152&gwt=pay|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=25 November 2018))</ref>

The 2019 Chinese Defense White Paper highlights the growing strategic competition between China and the United States. According to [[Anthony H. Cordesman]], although the paper flags both China and the US as competing superpowers, it was far more moderate in its treatment of the US in contrast to the United States' view on Chinese military developments. Cordesman states that the paper was a warning that will shape Sino-American relations as China becomes stronger than Russia in virtually every aspect other than its nuclear arsenal.<ref name="China's New 2019 Defense White Paper: An Open Strategic Challenge to the United States, But One Which Does Not Have to Lead to Conflict-July-24-2019">((cite journal|author=Cordesman, Anthony H. |title=China's New 2019 Defense White Paper: An Open Strategic Challenge to the United States, But One Which Does Not Have to Lead to Conflict|url=https://www.csis.org/analysis/chinas-new-2019-defense-white-paper-open-strategic-challenge-united-states-one-which-does|journal=[[Center for Strategic and International Studies]]|date=24 July 2019))</ref>

On 19 August 2019, the [[United States Studies Centre]] published a report, suggesting that Washington no longer enjoys primacy in the Indo-Pacific. It stresses that the [[War on Terror]] has greatly distracted the US response to China's role in the Pacific; that US military force in the region has greatly atrophied whereas Beijing only grew stronger and more capable since [[9/11]], to the point that China could now actively challenge the United States over the Indo-Pacific.<ref>((cite report|author=Ashley Townshend, Brendan Thomas-Noone, Matilda Steward|url=https://www.ussc.edu.au/analysis/averting-crisis-american-strategy-military-spending-and-collective-defence-in-the-indo-pacific|work=[[United States Studies Centre]]|title=Averting Crisis: American strategy, military spending and collective defence in the Indo-Pacific|date= 19 August 2019))</ref> China's challenging the United States for global predominance constitutes the core issue in the debate over the [[American decline]].<ref name="Ali">((cite news|last1=Wyne|first1=Ali|date=21 June 2018|title=Is America Choosing Decline?|magazine=The New Republic|url=https://newrepublic.com/article/149008/america-choosing-decline|access-date=28 March 2019))</ref><ref>((cite book|last1=Brown|first1=Stuart S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RgVBK3B1oOQC&q=US+cultural+decline|title=The Future of US Global Power: Delusions of Decline|date=2013|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|isbn=9781137023155|language=en|access-date=24 March 2019))((Dead link|date=September 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes ))</ref><ref name="Cn-domin">((cite web|last1=Rapoza|first1=Kenneth|title=The Future: China's Rise, America's Decline|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrapoza/2017/03/26/the-future-chinas-rise-americas-decline/#43133b093b2f|access-date=28 March 2019|website=Forbes|language=en))</ref>

China's emergence as a global economic power is tied to its large working population.<ref name="csis_Does_China">((Cite web|url=https://chinapower.csis.org/aging-problem/|title=Does China have an aging problem?|date=15 February 2016|website=ChinaPower Project|language=en-US|access-date=16 May 2019|archive-date=18 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518054454/https://chinapower.csis.org/aging-problem/|url-status=live))</ref> However, the population in China is aging faster than almost any other country in history.<ref name="csis_Does_China"/><ref name="barr_What_Americans">((Cite web |title=What Americans Can Learn From the Rest of the World About Retirement |last=Kapadia |first=Reshma |newspaper=[[Barron's (newspaper)|Barron's]] |date=7 September 2019 |access-date=3 February 2021 |url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/how-to-fix-the-global-retirement-crisis-51567808425 |archive-date=16 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210316101509/https://www.barrons.com/articles/how-to-fix-the-global-retirement-crisis-51567808425 |url-status=live ))</ref> Current demographic trends could hinder economic growth, create challenging social problems, and limit China's capabilities to act as a new global hegemon.<ref name="csis_Does_China"/><ref name="Tozzo pp. 79–92">((cite book | last=Tozzo | first=Brandon | title=American Hegemony after the Great Recession | chapter=The Demographic and Economic Problems of China | publisher=[[Palgrave Macmillan]] UK | publication-place=London | date=18 October 2017 | isbn=978-1-137-57538-8 | doi=10.1057/978-1-137-57539-5_5 | pages=79–92))</ref><ref name="fore_With_Great">((Cite magazine |title=With Great Demographics Comes Great Power |author=[[Nicholas Eberstadt|Nick Eberstadt]]|magazine=[[Foreign Affairs]] |date=11 June 2019 |access-date=4 February 2021 |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/world/2019-06-11/great-demographics-comes-great-power |archive-date=20 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210120080551/https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/world/2019-06-11/great-demographics-comes-great-power |url-status=live ))</ref><ref name="thea_The_Responsibility">((Cite web |title=The Responsibility to Counter China's Ambitions Falls to Us |last=Sasse |first=Ben |publisher=[[The Atlantic]] |date=26 January 2020 |access-date=4 February 2021 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/01/china-sasse/605074/ |archive-date=8 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208223916/https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/01/china-sasse/605074/ |url-status=live ))</ref> China's primarily debt-driven economic growth also creates concerns for substantial credit default risks and a potential financial crisis.

=== United Kingdom ===
[[File:Anglosphere Map.svg|alt=Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Anglosphere_Geometry.svg|thumb|400x400px|Variable geometry of the [[Anglosphere]], according to James Bennett (''The Anglosphere Challenge'')<ref>((cite book| author=James C. Bennett|title=The Anglosphere Challenge: Why the English-speaking Nations Will Lead the Way in the Twenty-first Century |year=2007 |page=81 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield))</ref>((Failed verification|date=December 2022))<!-- Text names subregions of the "Core" nations as not being part of the core themselves due to linguistic, legal, or significant cultural differences. These include Quebec, Puerto Rico, and Wales, among others. -->((Legend|#333366|Core Anglosphere))((Legend|#0083D7|Middle Anglosphere (states where English is one of several official languages)))((Legend|#0099FF|Outer sphere (English-using states of other civilisations)))((Legend|#bdd3f9|Periphery (states where English is widely used but is not an official governmental language)))]]
The [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]] is a [[sovereign state|sovereign country]]<!-- This phrase "sovereign country" has been the subject of edit warring in the past. It must not be changed without prior discussion and consensus. March 2017 --> in north-western Europe, off the north-((shy))western coast of the European mainland.<ref>((Cite web |last=United Kingdom Permanent Committee on Geographical Names |date=May 2017 |title=Toponymic guidelines for the United Kingdom |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/toponymic-guidelines |website=GOV.UK |at=10.2 Definitions |quote=usually shortened to United Kingdom ... The abbreviation is UK or U.K.))</ref> The United Kingdom includes the island of [[Great Britain]], the north-((shy))eastern part of the island of [[Ireland]], and many smaller islands within the [[British Isles]].<ref>((Cite web |title=Definition of Great Britain in English |url=http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Great-Britain?q=Great+Britain |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004223902/http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/Great-Britain?q=Great+Britain |archive-date=4 October 2013 |access-date=29 October 2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |quote=Great Britain is the name for the island that comprises England, Scotland and Wales, although the term is also used loosely to refer to the United Kingdom.))</ref> Northern Ireland shares [[Republic of Ireland–United Kingdom border|a land border]] with the [[Republic of Ireland]]. Otherwise, the United Kingdom is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the [[North Sea]] to the east, the [[English Channel]] to the south and the [[Celtic Sea]] to the south-west, giving it the 12th-longest coastline in the world. The [[Irish Sea]] separates Great Britain and Ireland. The total area of the United Kingdom is ((convert|93628|sqmi|km2|order=flip)), with an estimated population in 2020 of 68 million.<ref name="pop_estimate">((Cite web |title=Office for National Statistics |url=https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/populationandmigration/populationestimates/ |website=ons.gov.uk))</ref>

The nearby [[Isle of Man]], [[Bailiwick of Guernsey|Guernsey]] and [[Jersey]] are not part of the UK, being [[Crown Dependencies]] with the [[British Government]] responsible for defence and international representation.<ref>((Cite web |title=Key facts about the United Kingdom |url=http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/LivingintheUK/DG_10012517 |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20121015000000/http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/LivingintheUK/DG_10012517 |archive-date=15 October 2012 |access-date=6 March 2015 |publisher=[[Directgov]] |quote=The full title of this country is 'the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland'. Great Britain is made up of England, Scotland and Wales. The United Kingdom (UK) is made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. 'Britain' is used informally, usually meaning the United Kingdom.<br /> The Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are not part of the UK.))</ref> There are also 14 [[British Overseas Territories]],<ref name="overseasterrirories">((Cite web |title=Supporting the Overseas Territories |url=https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/protecting-and-developing-the-overseas-territories |access-date=9 March 2015 |publisher=[[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]]))</ref> the last remnants of the [[British Empire]] which, at its height in the 1920s, encompassed almost a quarter of the world's landmass and a third of the world's population, and was the [[List of largest empires#Empires at their greatest extent|largest empire in history]]. British influence can be observed in the language, culture and the legal and political systems of many of its [[List of countries that have gained independence from the United Kingdom|former colonies]].<ref>[[#refHogg|Hogg]], p.&nbsp;424 chapter 9 ''English Worldwide'' by [[David Crystal]]: "approximately one in four of the worlds population are capable of communicating to a useful level in English".</ref><ref>((Cite news |last=Reynolds |first=Glenn |date=28 October 2004 |title=Explaining the 'Anglosphere' |website=The Guardian |location=London |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2004/oct/28/uselections2004.usa4))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Head of the Commonwealth |url=http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Internal/150757/head_of_the_commonwealth/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706045334/http://www.thecommonwealth.org/Internal/150757/head_of_the_commonwealth/ |archive-date=6 July 2010 |access-date=9 October 2010 |publisher=Commonwealth Secretariat))</ref><ref>((Cite book |last=Julian Go |title=Constitutionalism and political reconstruction |date=2007 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-15174-1 |editor-last=Arjomand |editor-first=Saïd Amir |pages=92–94 |chapter=A Globalizing Constitutionalism?, Views from the Postcolony, 1945-2000 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kYmmnYKEvE0C&pg=PA94))</ref>((sfn|Ferguson|2004|p=307))

The United Kingdom has the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fifth-largest economy by nominal gross domestic product]] (GDP), and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|tenth-largest by purchasing power parity]] (PPP). It has a high-income economy and a very high [[Human Development Index|human development index rating]], ranking 13th in the world. The UK became the world's first [[Industrialisation|industrialised country]] and was the world's [[foremost power]] during the 19th and early 20th centuries.<ref>((Cite book |last=Mathias, P. |title=The First Industrial Nation: the Economic History of Britain, 1700–1914 |publisher=Routledge |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-415-26672-7 |location=London))</ref><ref name="ferguson">((Cite book |last=Ferguson |first=Niall |url=https://archive.org/details/empire00nial |title=Empire: The rise and demise of the British world order and the lessons for global power |publisher=Basic Books |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-465-02328-8 |location=New York |url-access=registration))</ref> Today the UK remains one of the world's [[great power]]s, with considerable economic, cultural, military, [[Science and technology in the United Kingdom|scientific, technological]] and [[Politics of the United Kingdom|political]] influence internationally.<ref>((Cite book |last1=T.V. Paul |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9jy28vBqscQC&dq="Great+power"&pg=PA59 |title=Balance of Power |last2=James J. Wirtz |last3=Michel Fortmann |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=2005 |isbn=978-0-7914-6401-4 |pages=59, 282)) ''Accordingly, the great powers after the Cold War are Britain, China, France, Germany, Japan, Russia and the United States'' p. 59</ref><ref name="David M. McCourt">((Cite book |last=McCourt |first=David |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lwpOnwEACAAJ&q=Britain+and+World+Power+Since+1945:+Constructing+a+Nation%27s+Role+in+International+Politics |title=Britain and World Power Since 1945: Constructing a Nation's Role in International Politics |publisher=[[University of Michigan Press]] |year=2014 |isbn=978-0-472-07221-7 |location=United States))</ref> It is a recognised [[nuclear state]] and is ranked [[List of countries by military expenditures|fourth globally in military expenditure]].<ref>((Cite journal |date=January 2021 |title=IISS Military Balance 2021 |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/04597222.2021.1868791?journalCode=tmib20 |journal=The Military Balance |volume=121 |issue=1 |pages=23–29 |doi=10.1080/04597222.2021.1868791 |access-date=1 October 2021 |s2cid=232050862))</ref> It has been a [[permanent members of the United Nations Security Council|permanent member]] of the [[United Nations Security Council]] since its first session in 1946.

The United Kingdom is a member of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]], the [[Council of Europe]], the [[G7]], the [[Group of Ten (economics)|Group of Ten]], the [[G-20 major economies|G20]], the [[United Nations]], [[NATO]], [[AUKUS]], the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] (OECD), [[Interpol]], and the [[World Trade Organization]] (WTO). It was a member state of the [[European Communities]] (EC) and its successor, the [[European Union]] (EU), from its [[Accession of the United Kingdom to the European Communities|accession in 1973]] until its [[Brexit|withdrawal in 2020]] following a [[2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum|referendum]] held in 2016.

Since the end of the second World War, the United Kingdom has been described as a "super power in decline".<ref>((cite book |last1=Gamble |first1=Andrew |title=Britain in Decline: Economic Policy, Political Strategy and the British State |date=1994 |publisher=The MacMillan Press |isbn=978-0-333-61441-9 |edition=Fourth |location=London |page=xiv))</ref> Nonetheless, a 2019 study in geopolitical capability (carried out by the UK-based [[Henry Jackson Society]]) found the United Kingdom to be the most powerful nation in Europe and the second most powerful in the world behind the United States.<ref>((cite web |title=Audit of Geopolitical Capability: An Assessment of Twenty Major Powers |url=https://henryjacksonsociety.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/HJS-2019-Audit-of-Geopolitical-Capability-Report-web.pdf |access-date=7 March 2022 |publisher=The Henry Jackson Society |page=38 |editor-last1=Rogers |editor-first1=James))</ref> In the aftermath of the second World War and the [[Suez crisis]], the United Kingdom substantially declined as a world power. Towards the end of the 20th century, and especially under the Conservative-led government of [[Margaret Thatcher]] and the Labour-led government of [[Tony Blair]], the United Kingdom underwent a period of strong economic growth and [[Cool Britannia|cultural reach]], especially in the United States; the [[United Kingdom–United States relations|relationship]] between the UK and the US is generally considered to be among the [[Special Relationship|strongest international relationships]]. A notable break in this tradition occurred under the administration of [[Barack Obama]] who sought to align with Germany as a principal European ally.<ref name=":7">((cite news |last=Elliott |first=Michael |date=22 January 2007 |title=China Takes on the World |publisher=[[Time Magazine]] |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1576831,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070114062833/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1576831,00.html |archive-date=14 January 2007))</ref><ref name="telegraph20161114">((cite news |last=Allen |first=Nick |date=14 November 2016 |title=Barack Obama delivers parting snub to special relationship with Britain by naming Angela Merkel his 'closest partner' |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/14/barack-obama-delivers-parting-snub-to-special-relationship-with/ |url-status=live |url-access=subscription |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/11/14/barack-obama-delivers-parting-snub-to-special-relationship-with/ |archive-date=12 January 2022))((cbignore))</ref> Although a highly controversial figure in the United Kingdom, President [[Donald Trump]] described the UK-US relationship as "just so important" and the administration of President [[Joe Biden]] has restored traditional relations, reiterating that "the United States has no closer ally than the United Kingdom".<ref>((cite web |title=History of the Special Relationship |url=https://uk.usembassy.gov/our-relationship/policy-history/ |access-date=7 March 2022 |website=U.S. Embassy and Consulates in the United Kingdom |publisher=United States Government))</ref>

The UK has been described as a "cultural superpower",<ref>[http://www.britishpoliticssociety.no/British%20Politics%20Review%2001_2011.pdf "The cultural superpower: British cultural projection abroad"] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180916155419/http://www.britishpoliticssociety.no/British%20Politics%20Review%2001_2011.pdf|date=16 September 2018)). Journal of the British Politics Society, Norway. Volume 6. No. 1. Winter 2011</ref><ref>((cite news |author=Sheridan, Greg |date=15 May 2010 |title=Cameron has chance to make UK great again |work=The Australian |location=Sydney |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/cameron-has-chance-to-make-uk-great-again/story-e6frg6zo-1225866975992 |access-date=20 May 2012))</ref> and [[London]] has been described as a world cultural capital.<ref>((cite web |title=London is the world capital of the 21st century... says New York &#124; News |url=http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23389580-london-is-the-world-capital-of-the-21st-century-says-new-york.do |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120125224024/http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23389580-london-is-the-world-capital-of-the-21st-century-says-new-york.do |archive-date=25 January 2012 |access-date=10 February 2012 |work=Evening Standard |location=London))</ref><ref>((cite news |last=Calder |first=Simon |date=22 December 2007 |title=London, capital of the world |work=The Independent |location=London |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/london-capital-of-the-world-766661.html))</ref> A global opinion poll for the BBC saw the UK ranked the third most positively viewed nation in the world (behind Germany and Canada) in 2013 and 2014,<ref>((Cite news |date=23 May 2013 |title=BBC poll: Germany most popular country in the world |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-22624104 |access-date=17 February 2018))</ref><ref>((Cite news |date=4 June 2014 |title=World Service Global Poll: Negative views of Russia on the rise |publisher=BBC |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/latestnews/2014/world-service-country-poll |access-date=17 February 2018))</ref>((update inline|date=August 2022)) although the [[2003 War in Iraq]] considerably damaged perception of the UK outside of the [[Anglosphere]]. While the United Kingdom has maintained "exceptionally strong" [[Italy–United Kingdom relations|relations]] with Italy and the Netherlands, the decision to [[Brexit|withdraw from the European Union]] sparked sharp criticism of the United Kingdom across other major European powers. ((citation needed|date=December 2022))

=== France ===
((Main|France|Economy of France))
((See also|List of largest French companies))

The [[France|French Republic]] is considered to be a great power.<ref>((Cite news |last=Géraud ("Pertinax") |first=André |date=11 October 2011 |title=Can France Again Be a Great Power? |language=en-US |journal=Foreign Affairs |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/france/1947-10-01/can-france-again-be-great-power |access-date=8 April 2021 |issn=0015-7120))</ref> France retains its centuries-long status as a global centre of [[French art|art]], [[List of French scientists|science]] and [[List of French philosophers|philosophy]]. It hosts the [[List of World Heritage Sites in France|fifth-largest]] number of [[UNESCO]] [[World Heritage Site]]s and is the world's leading tourist destination, receiving over 89&nbsp;million foreign [[Tourism in France|visitors]] in 2018.<ref>((Cite web |date=17 May 2019 |title=France posts new tourist record despite Yellow Vest unrest |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20190517-france-tourism-record-number-visitors-tourists-despite-yellow-vests-paris |website=France 24))</ref> France is a [[Power (international relations)#Power as status|cultural superpower]].<ref name=":4">((cite web |date=2021 |title=Cultural Influence rankings |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/influence-rankings |access-date=24 May 2021 |publisher=USnews))</ref> France is a [[developed country]] with the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP]] and [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|eight-largest by PPP]];<ref name="2020/01">((cite web |title=World Economic Outlook Database, April 2022 |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2022/April/weo-report?c=112&s=NGDPD,PPPGDP,NGDPDPC,PPPPC,LUR,LE,&sy=2020&ey=2026&ssm=0&scsm=1&scc=0&ssd=1&ssc=0&sic=0&sort=country&ds=.&br=1 |access-date=20 April 2022 |website=IMF.org |publisher=International Monetary Fund))</ref> in terms of aggregate household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world.<ref>((cite web |date=October 2010 |title=Global Wealth Report |url=http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/fichiers/enseig/ecoineg/EcoIneg_fichiers/DaviesShorrocks2010(CSGlobalWealthReport).pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141109055804/http://piketty.pse.ens.fr/fichiers/enseig/ecoineg/EcoIneg_fichiers/DaviesShorrocks2010%28CSGlobalWealthReport%29.pdf |archive-date=9 November 2014 |access-date=27 October 2014 |publisher=Credit Suisse |quote="In euro and USD terms, the total wealth of French households is very sizeable. Although it has just 1% of the world's adults, France ranks fourth among nations in aggregate household wealth&nbsp;– behind China and just ahead of Germany. Europe as a whole accounts for 35% of the individuals in the global top 1%, but France itself contributes a quarter of the European contingent.))</ref> France performs well in [[International rankings of France|international rankings]] of [[Education Index|education]], [[Health care in France|health care]], [[List of countries by life expectancy|life expectancy]] and [[Human Development Index|human development]].<ref>((cite web |date=8 December 2010 |title=World Health Organization Assesses the World's Health Systems |url=https://www.who.int/whr/2000/media_centre/press_release/en/ |access-date=16 July 2011 |publisher=World Health Organization))</ref><ref>((cite web |title=World Population Prospects&nbsp;– The 2006 Revision |url=https://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/wpp2006/WPP2006_Highlights_rev.pdf |access-date=27 April 2010 |publisher=United Nations))</ref> It remains a [[great power]] in global affairs,<ref>Jack S. Levy, ''War in the Modern Great Power System, 1495–1975'', (2014) p. 29</ref> being one of the five [[permanent members of the United Nations Security Council]] and an official [[List of states with nuclear weapons|nuclear-weapon state]]. France is a founding and [[Big Four (Western Europe)|leading]] [[Member state of the European Union|member of the European Union]] and the [[Eurozone]],<ref name="superficy">((cite web |title=Europa Official Site&nbsp;– France |url=http://europa.eu/about-eu/countries/member-countries/france/index_en.htm |access-date=28 October 2014 |publisher=EU))</ref> as well as a key member of the [[Group of Seven]], [[NATO|North Atlantic Treaty Organization]] (NATO), [[OECD|Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] (OECD) and [[Organisation internationale de la Francophonie|La Francophonie]]. It is also a [[List of transcontinental countries|transcontinental country]] spanning [[Western Europe]] and [[Overseas France|overseas regions and territories]] in the [[Americas]] and the [[Atlantic Ocean|Atlantic]], [[Pacific Ocean|Pacific]] and [[Indian Ocean]]s.<ref name="twelve" group="n.">[[French Guiana]] is in South America; [[Guadeloupe]] and [[Martinique]] are in the Caribbean Sea; and [[Réunion]] and [[Mayotte]] are in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Africa. All five [[Administrative divisions of France|are considered integral parts of the French Republic]]. France also comprises [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]] in North America; [[Saint Barthélemy]] and [[Saint Martin (island)|Saint Martin]] in the Caribbean; [[French Polynesia]], [[New Caledonia]], [[Wallis and Futuna]] and [[Clipperton Island]] in the Pacific Ocean; and the [[French Southern and Antarctic Lands]].</ref> Including [[Administrative divisions of France|all of its territories]], France has twelve [[time zone]]s, the most of any country. Its [[Metropolitan France|metropolitan area]] extends from the [[Rhine]] to the [[Atlantic Ocean]] and from the [[Mediterranean Sea]] to the [[English Channel]] and the [[North Sea]]; overseas territories include [[French Guiana]] in [[South America]], [[Saint Pierre and Miquelon]] in the North Atlantic, the [[French West Indies]], and several islands in [[Oceania]] and the Indian Ocean. Due to its several coastal territories, France has the largest [[exclusive economic zone]] in the world. France borders [[Belgium]], [[Luxembourg]], [[Germany]], [[Switzerland]], [[Monaco]], [[Italy]], [[Andorra]] and [[Spain]] in Europe, as well as the [[Kingdom of the Netherlands|Netherlands]], [[Suriname]] and [[Brazil]] in the Americas. Its [[Regions of France|eighteen integral regions]] (five of which are overseas) span a combined area of ((cvt|643801|km2)) and over 68 million people (((as of|2021|January|lc=y))).<ref>((cite web |title=Field Listing :: Area |url=https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2147.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140131115000/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2147.html |archive-date=31 January 2014 |access-date=1 November 2015 |website=The World Factbook |publisher=CIA)) ((PD-notice))</ref>

France has a developed, high-income [[mixed economy]], characterised by [[Dirigisme|sizeable government involvement]], [[economic diversity]], a skilled labour force, and high innovation. For roughly two centuries, the French economy has [[Angus Maddison statistics of the ten largest economies by GDP (PPP)|consistently ranked]] among the ten largest globally; it is currently the world's [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|eight-largest]] by [[purchasing power parity]], the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fifth-largest]] by [[nominal GDP]], and the second-largest in the European Union by both metrics.<ref name="2020/01" /> France is considered an [[economic power]], with membership in the [[Group of Seven]] leading [[Developed country|industrialised countries]], the [[OECD|Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)]], and the [[G20|Group of Twenty]] largest economies.

France's economy is highly diversified; [[Service sector|services]] represent two-thirds of both the workforce and GDP,<ref>[https://www.eulerhermes.com/en_global/economic-research/country-reports/France.html Country profile: France], [[Euler Hermes]]</ref> while the [[industrial sector]] accounts for a fifth of GDP and a similar proportion of employment. France is the third-biggest manufacturing country in Europe, behind Germany and Italy, and ranks eighth in the world by share of global manufacturing output, at 1.9 percent.<ref>((Cite web |title=These are the top 10 manufacturing countries in the world |url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/02/countries-manufacturing-trade-exports-economics/ |access-date=10 February 2022 |website=World Economic Forum |date=25 February 2020 |language=en))</ref> Less than 2 percent of GDP is generated by the [[primary sector]], namely agriculture;<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/france/ Country profil: France], [[CIA World factbook]]</ref> however, France's agricultural sector is among the largest in value and leads the EU in terms of overall production.<ref>[https://import-export.societegenerale.fr/en/country/france/market-sectors France: the market] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210219011017/https://import-export.societegenerale.fr/en/country/france/market-sectors |date=19 February 2021 )), [[Société Générale]] (latest Update: September 2020)</ref>

In 2018, France was the fifth-largest trading nation in the world and the second-largest in Europe, with the value of exports representing over a fifth of GDP.<ref name="wto">[https://www.wto.org/english/res_e/statis_e/wts2019_e/wts2019_e.pdf World Trade Statistical Review 2019], [[World Trade Organization]], p. 11</ref> Its membership in the [[Eurozone]] and the broader [[European Single Market]] facilitate access to capital, goods, services, and skilled labour.<ref name="euroc">((Cite news |last=Andrews |first=Edmund L. |date=1 January 2002 |title=Germans Say Goodbye to the Mark, a Symbol of Strength and Unity |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/01/world/germans-say-goodbye-to-the-mark-a-symbol-of-strength-and-unity.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501031330/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/01/world/germans-say-goodbye-to-the-mark-a-symbol-of-strength-and-unity.html |archive-date=1 May 2011))</ref> Despite [[Protectionism|protectionist]] policies over certain industries, particularly in agriculture, France has generally played a leading role in fostering free trade and commercial integration in Europe in order to enhance its economy.<ref>((Cite web |title=France – Finance |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/France |access-date=28 August 2021 |website=Encyclopædia Britannica |language=en))</ref><ref>((cite news |last=Taylor Martin |first=Susan |date=28 December 1998 |title=On Jan.&nbsp;1, out of many arises one Euro |page=National, 1.A |newspaper=[[The St. Petersburg Times (Russia)|The St. Petersburg Times]]))</ref> In 2019, it ranked first in Europe and 13th in the world in [[Foreign Direct Investment|foreign direct investment]], with European countries and the United States being leading sources.<ref name="FDI">[https://www.ey.com/en_gl/attractiveness/20/how-can-europe-reset-the-investment-agenda-now-to-rebuild-its-future How can Europe reset the investment agenda now to rebuild its future?], [[Ernst&Young|EY]], 28 May 2020</ref> According to the [[Bank of France]], the leading recipients of FDI were manufacturing, real estate, finance and insurance.<ref name="lloydsbanktrade.com">((Cite web |title=Foreign direct investment (FDI) in France – Investing – International Trade Portal International Trade Portal |url=https://www.lloydsbanktrade.com/en/market-potential/france/investment |access-date=28 August 2021 |website=lloydsbanktrade.com))</ref> The [[Île-de-France|Paris region]] has the highest concentration of multinational firms in Europe.<ref name="lloydsbanktrade.com" />

With 31 companies that are part of the [[Fortune Global 500#Breakdown by country|world's biggest 500 companies]], France was in 2020 the most represented European country in the 2020 [[Fortune Global 500]], ahead of Germany (27 companies) and the UK (22).<ref name="forbes">((Cite web|title=Global 500|url=https://fortune.com/global500/2020/|access-date=10 August 2020|website=Fortune|language=en))</ref>

As of August 2020, France was also the country that weighed the most on the Eurozone's [[EURO STOXX 50]] (representing 36.4% of all total assets), ahead of Germany (35.2%).<ref>[https://www.stoxx.com/document/Bookmarks/CurrentFactsheets/SX5GT.pdf EURO STOXX 50], 31 August 2020</ref>

Several French corporations rank amongst the largest in their industries such as [[AXA]] in insurance and [[Air France-KLM|Air France]] in air transportation.<ref>((cite magazine |title= Global 2000 Leading Companies |magazine= [[Forbes]]|url= https://www.forbes.com/global2000/list/#header:revenue_sortreverse:true_industry:Airline |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110423003358/http://www.forbes.com/global2000/list#header:revenue_sortreverse:true_industry:Airline |url-status=dead |archive-date=23 April 2011 |date=May 2015))</ref> Luxury and consumer good are particularly relevant, with [[L'Oreal]] being the world's largest cosmetic company while [[LVMH]] and [[PPR (company)|Kering]] are the world's two largest luxury product companies. In energy and utilities, [[Engie|GDF-Suez]] and [[Électricité de France|EDF]] are amongst the largest energy companies in the world, and [[Areva]] is a large nuclear-energy company; [[Veolia Environnement]] is the world's largest environmental services and water management company; [[Vinci SA]], [[Bouygues]] and [[Eiffage]] are large construction companies; [[Michelin]] ranks in the top 3 tire manufacturers; [[JCDecaux]] is the world's largest outdoor advertising corporation; [[BNP Paribas]], [[Credit Agricole]] and [[Société Générale]] rank amongst the largest in the world by assets. [[Capgemini]] and [[Atos]] are among the largest technology consulting companies.

[[Carrefour]] is the world's second-largest retail group in terms of revenue; [[Total SE|Total]] is the world's fourth-largest private oil company; [[Danone]] is the world's fifth-largest food company and the world's largest supplier of mineral water; [[Sanofi]] is the world's fifth-largest pharmaceutical company; [[Publicis]] is the world's third-largest advertising company; [[Groupe PSA]] is the world's 6th and Europe's 2nd largest automaker; [[Accor]] is the leading European hotel group; [[Alstom]] is one of the world's leading conglomerates in rail transport.

Under the doctrine of [[Dirigiste|''Dirigisme'']], the government historically played a major role in the economy; policies such as [[indicative planning]] and [[Nationalization|nationalisation]] are credited for contributing to three decades of unprecedented postwar economic growth known as ''[[Trente Glorieuses]]''. At its peak in 1982, the public sector accounted for one-fifth of industrial employment and over four-fifths of the credit market. Beginning in the late 20th century, France loosened regulations and state involvement in the economy, with most leading companies now being privately owned; state ownership now dominates only transportation, defence and broadcasting.<ref>((Cite web|title=France - Economy |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/France|access-date=28 August 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en))</ref> Policies aimed at promoting economic dynamism and privatisation have improved France's economic standing globally: it is among the world's 10 most [[Innovation|innovative]] countries in the 2020 [[Bloomberg Innovation Index]],<ref>[https://www.businessinsider.com/these-are-the-10-most-innovative-countries-bloomberg-says-2020-1?IR=T These are the world's most innovative countries], [[Business Insider]]</ref> and the 15th most competitive, according to the 2019 [[Global Competitiveness Report#2019 rankings|Global Competitiveness Report]] (up two places from 2018).<ref>((Cite web|url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_TheGlobalCompetitivenessReport2019.pdf |title=The Global Competitiveness Report 2019))</ref>

According to the IMF, France ranked [[List of countries by GDP (nominal) per capita|30th in GDP per capita]], with roughly $45,000 per inhabitant. It placed 23rd in the [[Human Development Index]], indicating very high human development. [[Public corruption]] is among the lowest in the world, with France consistently ranking among the 30 least corrupt countries since the [[Corruption Perceptions Index]] began in 2012; it placed 22nd in 2021, up one place from the previous year.<ref name="HDIFR">((cite web |url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/2018-update |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914203906/http://hdr.undp.org/en/2018-update |url-status=dead |archive-date=14 September 2018 |title=Human Development Index 2018 Statistical Update |publisher=[[United Nations Development Programme]] |website=hdr.undp.org |access-date=10 July 2019 ))</ref><ref>((cite web |url=https://www.transparency.org/files/content/pages/CPI_2018_Executive_Summary_EN.pdf |title=Corruption Perceptions Index 2018 Executive summary p. 2 |publisher=[[Transparency International]] |website=transparency.org |access-date=10 July 2019))</ref> France is Europe's second-largest spender in [[research and development]], at over 2 percent of GDP; globally, it ranks 12th.<ref>[http://uis.unesco.org/apps/visualisations/research-and-development-spending/ How does your country invest in R&D ?], [[UNESCO Institute for Statistics]] (retrieved on 27 September 2020)</ref> France is also the second largest contributor to the [[European Space Agency]] after [[Germany]].<ref name=":5">((cite web|url=https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2019/04/20191128_esa-ministerial-2019.html|publisher=German Aerospace Centre|date=28 November 2019|title=Germany invests 3.3 billion euro in European space exploration and becomes ESA's largest contributor|access-date=17 May 2020|archive-date=20 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620152742/https://www.dlr.de/content/en/articles/news/2019/04/20191128_esa-ministerial-2019.html|url-status=live))</ref>

Financial services, banking, and insurance are important part of the economy. [[AXA]] is the world's second-largest insurance company by total nonbanking assets in 2020.<ref>((Cite web|title=World's Largest Insurers — 2022 Edition: China Insurers, US Health Writers Show Gains in AM Best's Ranking |url=https://news.ambest.com/articlecontent.aspx?refnum=316701|access-date=2022-02-10|website=news.ambest.com))</ref><ref>[http://www.ambest.com/review/displaychart.aspx?Record_Code=274407 World's largest insurers – Total non banking assets, 2019], [[AM Best]], 2019</ref> As of 2011, the three largest [[cooperative banking|financial institutions cooperatively owned by their customers]] were French: [[Crédit Agricole]], [[Groupe Caisse d'Épargne|Groupe Caisse D'Epargne]], and [[Groupe Caisse d'Épargne|Groupe Caisse D'Epargne]].<ref>((cite web |last1=Gould |first1=Charles |title=Global300 Report 2010, International Co-operative Alliance. The world's major co-operatives and mutual businesses |url=https://www.ica.coop/sites/default/files/basic-page-attachments/global300-report-2011-1757377405.pdf |website=ica.coop |access-date=29 November 2018 |archive-date=13 August 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210813153010/https://www.ica.coop/sites/default/files/basic-page-attachments/global300-report-2011-1757377405.pdf |url-status=dead ))</ref> According to a 2020 report by [[S&P Global Market Intelligence|S&P Global Market Intelligenc]], France's leading banks, [[BNP Paribas]] and [[Crédit Agricole]], are among the top world's 10 largest bank by assets, with [[Société Générale]] and [[Groupe BPCE]] ranking 17th and 19th globally, respectively.<ref name="SP">((cite web|last=Ali|first=Zarmina|date=7 April 2020|title=The world's 100 largest banks |url=https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/the-world-s-100-largest-banks-2020-57854079|access-date=23 June 2020|publisher=Standard & Poor))</ref>

[[Paris]] is a leading [[global city]], and has one of the largest city GDP in the world and the largest in Europe.<ref>[https://www.iied.org/global-geography-world-cities The global geography of world cities], iied, 9 July 2020</ref> It ranks as the first city in Europe (and 3rd worldwide) by the number of companies classified in ''[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]]'''s [[Fortune Global 500]].<ref>[https://parisladefense.com/en/choisir-paris-la-defense 10 reasons to move to Paris La Défense], Official website of [[Paris La Défense]]</ref> [[Paris region|Paris]] produced US$984 billion at [[Gross domestic product#Cross-border comparison and purchasing power parity|market exchange rates]] or around 1/3 of the '''economy of France''' in 2021<ref name="auto1">((Cite web|title=Global Wealth PPP Distribution: Who Are The Leaders Of The Global Economy? - Full Size|url=https://www.visualcapitalist.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Global-Wealth-PPP-Distribution.html|access-date=2021-10-21|website=www.visualcapitalist.com))</ref> while the economy of the [[Paris metropolitan area]] — the largest in Europe with London—generates around 1/3 of France's GDP or around $1.0 trillion.<ref name="auto1"/> Paris has been ranked as the 2nd most attractive global city in the world in 2019 by [[KPMG]].<ref>[https://gp-investment-agency.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/GlobalCitiesInvestmentMonitor2019web-compressed.pdf Global Cities Investment Monitor 2019], ''[[KPMG]]'', 2019</ref> [[La Défense]], Paris's Central Business District, was ranked by [[Ernst & Young]] in 2017 as the leading business district in [[continental Europe]], and fourth in the world.<ref>[https://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/ey-the-attractiveness-of-world-class-business-districts/$FILE/ey-the-attractiveness-of-world-class-business-districts.pdf The attractiveness of world-class business districts: Paris La Défense vs. its global competitors] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200718045821/https://www.ey.com/Publication/vwLUAssets/ey-the-attractiveness-of-world-class-business-districts/$FILE/ey-the-attractiveness-of-world-class-business-districts.pdf |date=18 July 2020 )), [[Ernst & Young|EY]], November 2017</ref> The [[OECD]] is headquartered in Paris, the nation's financial capital. The other major economic centres of the country include [[Lyon]], [[Toulouse]] (centre of the European aerospace industry), [[Marseille]] and [[Lille]].

The Paris stock exchange (((lang-fr|links=no|La Bourse de Paris))) is one of the oldest in the world, created by [[Louis XV]] in 1724.<ref>((cite web |language=fr |author=Audrey Vautherot |url=http://www.gralon.net/articles/economie-et-finance/bourse/article-la-bourse-de-paris---une-institution-depuis-1724-981.htm |title=La Bourse de Paris : une institution depuis 1724 |trans-title=The Paris Stock Exchange: an institution since 1724 |website=Gralon |date=19 November 2007))</ref> In 2000, it merged with counterparts in Amsterdam and Brussels to form [[Euronext]],<ref name="banque">((cite web |author=Embassy of France |url=http://www.ambafrance-us.org/spip.php?article511 |title=Embassy of France in Washington: Economy of France |publisher=Ambafrance-us.org |access-date=16 July 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-date=9 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009235442/http://ambafrance-us.org/spip.php?article511 ))</ref> which in 2007 merged with the [[New York stock exchange]] to form [[NYSE Euronext]], the world's largest stock exchange.<ref name="banque" /> [[Euronext Paris]], the French branch of [[Euronext]], is Europe's second-largest stock exchange market, behind the [[London Stock Exchange]].<ref name=sse>((cite web|url=https://sseinitiative.org/stock-exchange/euronext-paris/ |title=Euronext Paris |publisher=Sustainable Stock Exchanges Initiative |access-date=14 April 2022))</ref>

=== Russia ===
((Further|Post-Soviet Russia))

The [[Russian Federation]], the world's largest nation, is home to over 30% of the world's [[natural resources]] according to some sources.<ref name="ems.psu.edu">Kevin M. Korabik, [http://www.ems.psu.edu/~williams/russia.htm Russia's Natural Resources and their Economic Effects] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190720062114/https://www.ems.psu.edu/~williams/russia.htm|date=20 July 2019)), ''[[Penn State College of Earth and Mineral Sciences]]'', 1 December 1997</ref><ref>((cite web |date=July 2016 |title=India Partner Country at INNOPROM-2016 Show: Russia: (11–14 July 2016, Yekaterinburg, Russia) |url=http://www.eepcindia.com/download/Circular-160411115935.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160611000234/http://www.eepcindia.com/download/Circular-160411115935.pdf |archive-date=11 June 2016 |access-date=4 January 2017 |publisher=[[Engineering Exports Promotion Council|EEPC India]]))</ref><ref>((cite web |date=February 2016 |title=Pre-empting Russia's Year of Ecology |url=http://www.oceanunite.org/round-up/pre-empting-russias-year-ecology/ |work=Ocean Unite |access-date=4 November 2021 |archive-date=4 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160904133942/http://www.oceanunite.org/round-up/pre-empting-russias-year-ecology/ |url-status=dead ))</ref> Since its [[Russian Empire|imperial times]], it has been both a [[great power]] and a [[regional power]]. Throughout most of the [[Soviet Union|Soviet]]-era, Russia was one of the world's two [[superpower]]s. However, after the [[dissolution of the Soviet Union]], it lost its superpower status, and recently has been suggested as a potential candidate for resuming superpower status in the 21st century.<ref name="Russia in the 21st Century">((cite book |author=Steven Rosefielde |url=http://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/economics/international-economics/russia-21st-century-prodigal-superpower |title=Russia in the 21st Century |date=February 2005 |publisher=[[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill|UNC]] Press |isbn=978-0-521-54529-7 |author-link=Steven Rosefielde))</ref><ref name="georgiandaily.com">New York Times by Ronald Steel professor of international relations August 24, 2008 (Superpower Reborn)[http://georgiandaily.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=6527&Itemid=68&lang=ka]</ref><ref>((cite web |author=Farooque Chowdhury |date=22 December 2013 |title=A Militarily Resurging Russia |url=http://www.countercurrents.org/chowdhury221213.htm |access-date=13 September 2015 |publisher=Counter Currents))</ref> While others have made the assertion that it is already a superpower.<ref>((cite news |last1=Steel |first1=Ronald |date=24 August 2008 |title=A Superpower Is Reborn |newspaper=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/24/opinion/24steel.html?_r=0 |access-date=19 November 2015))</ref> In 2009, [[Hugo Chavez]], late President of [[Venezuela]] whose government was noted to have enjoyed warm relations with the [[Government of Russia|Kremlin]], stated that "Russia is a superpower", citing waning American influence in global affairs, and suggested the [[ruble]] be elevated to a global currency.<ref>((cite news |author=Megan K. Stack |date=11 September 2009 |title=Venezuela's Hugo Chavez recognizes independence of breakaway Georgia republics |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |url=https://articles.latimes.com/2009/sep/11/world/fg-russia-chavez11 |access-date=7 July 2014))</ref> [[Israel]]i Prime Minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]] called Russia an important superpower, praising its effectiveness as an ally of Israel.<ref>((cite web |author=Robert Berger |date=13 February 2010 |title=Netanyahu Heads to Russia with Call for 'Crippling Sanctions' on Iran |url=http://www.voanews.com/content/netanyahu-heads-to-russia-with-call-for-crippling-sanctions-on-iran-84341537/112463.html |access-date=7 July 2014 |publisher=[[Voice of America]]))</ref> In his 2005 publication entitled ''Russia in the 21st Century: The Prodigal Superpower'', [[Steven Rosefielde]], a professor of economics at [[University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill]], predicted that Russia would emerge as a superpower before 2010 and augur another arms race. However, Rosefielde noted that such an end would come with tremendous sacrifice to global security and the Russian people's freedom.<ref name="Russia in the 21st Century" />

In 2014, [[Stephen Kinzer]] of ''[[The Boston Globe]]'' compared Russia's actions with its own neighbouring territories, to those of "any other superpower", taking [[2014 pro-Russian unrest in Ukraine|Ukraine]] and [[Annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation|Crimea]] as examples.<ref>((cite news |author=Stephen Kinzer |date=11 May 2014 |title=Russia acts like any other superpower |newspaper=The Boston Globe |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2014/05/11/russia-acts-like-any-other-superpower/AJRSNiIUYQPAHRlLXcfIlJ/story.html |access-date=7 July 2014))</ref> A mixed opinion has been offered by Matthew Fleischer of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'': he contends that Russia will not become a superpower unless [[climate change]] eats away at the [[permafrost]] that covers, as of March 2014, two-thirds of the country's landmass. The absence of this permafrost would reveal immense stores of oil, natural gas, and precious minerals, as well as potential farmland, which would allow Russia to "become the world's bread basket—and control the planet's food supply".<ref>((cite news |author=Matthew Fleischer |date=12 March 2014 |title=How curbing climate change can prevent Russia from becoming a superpower |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/opinion/opinion-la/la-ol-climate-change-russia-super-power-20140311-story.html |access-date=7 July 2014))</ref>

Russian news agency [[RIA Novosti]] called Russia a "superpower" [[Russian military intervention in the Syrian Civil War|after its actions in Syria]],<ref>((cite news |title=Россия – военная сверхдержава, и США должны с этим считаться |language=ru |publisher=РИА Новости |url=http://ria.ru/world/20151104/1313528799.html |access-date=8 November 2015))</ref> and after the formation of a [[Russia–Syria–Iran–Iraq coalition|coalition to fight ISIS in Syria and Iraq]], Benny Avni of the ''[[New York Post]]'' called Russia the "world's new sole superpower". Russian intervention in Syria was crucial in helping [[Bashar al-Assad|Bashar Al Assad]] to stay in power against ISIS and western backed rebels.<ref>((Cite web |last=Dreazen |first=Yochi |date=2017-11-21 |title=Bashar al-Assad is taking a sickening victory lap through Russia |url=https://www.vox.com/world/2017/11/21/16684862/assad-syria-russia-putin-civil-war |access-date=2023-09-06 |website=Vox |language=en))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=It's about time we all admit that Putin has prevailed in Syria |url=https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/north-africa-west-asia/syria-russia-assad-putin-iran-israel-middle-east-oil-usa-war/ |access-date=2023-09-06 |website=openDemocracy |language=en))</ref><ref>((Cite web |last=Bill Bray |first=Miyako Yerick |date=2017-08-31 |title=Putin Saved Assad, Will He Save Maduro? |url=https://nationalinterest.org/feature/putin-saved-assad-will-he-save-maduro-22127 |access-date=2023-09-06 |website=The National Interest |language=en))</ref><ref>((Cite web |date=2015-09-29 |title=Obama has turned Putin into the world's most powerful leader |url=https://nypost.com/2015/09/29/obama-has-turned-putin-into-the-worlds-most-powerful-leader/ |access-date=2023-09-06 |language=en-US))</ref>

Since the creation of the [[Wagner Group|Wagner group]] in 2014, Russia has used it to intervene in various conflicts (while maintaining plausible deniability) in Africa aside from being involved in [[Libya]], [[Syria]], and even [[Venezuela]] by projecting power far away from the borders of the former Soviet Union.<ref>((cite news |title=Obama has turned Putin into the world's most powerful leader |newspaper=New York Post |url=https://nypost.com/2015/09/29/obama-has-turned-putin-into-the-worlds-most-powerful-leader/ |access-date=8 November 2015))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=What Is Russia's Wagner Group Doing in Africa? |url=https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/what-russias-wagner-group-doing-africa |access-date=2023-09-06 |website=Council on Foreign Relations |language=en))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Russia's Wagner Group: Where is it active? – DW – 06/25/2023 |url=https://www.dw.com/en/russias-wagner-group-where-is-it-active/a-66027220 |access-date=2023-09-06 |website=dw.com |language=en))</ref>

However, several analysts commented on the fact that Russia showed signs of an aging and shrinking population. [[Fred Weir]] said that this severely constricts and limits Russia's potential to re-emerge as a central world power.<ref>((cite news |author=Fred Weir |date=3 November 2011 |title=Despite huge cash bonuses to mothers, Russia's population is shrinking |work=GlobalPost |url=http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/europe/russia/111102/russia-population-superpower-health-soviet-union |access-date=8 July 2014))</ref> In 2011, British historian and professor [[Niall Ferguson]] also highlighted the negative effects of Russia's declining population, and suggested that Russia is on its way to "global irrelevance".<ref>((cite magazine |author=Niall Ferguson |date=12 December 2011 |title=In Decline, Putin's Russia Is on Its Way to Global Irrelevance |url=http://www.newsweek.com/decline-putins-russia-its-way-global-irrelevance-65847 |magazine=[[Newsweek]] |access-date=2 August 2014))</ref> Russia has, however, shown a slight population growth since the late 2000s, partly due to immigration and slowly rising birth rates.<ref>((cite magazine |author=Mark Adomanis |date=11 May 2013 |title=Russia's Population Isn't Shrinking (It's Growing Very, Very Slowly) |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/markadomanis/2013/05/11/russias-population-isnt-shrinking-its-growing-very-very-slowly/ |url-status=dead |magazine=Forbes |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130609004205/http://www.forbes.com/sites/markadomanis/2013/05/11/russias-population-isnt-shrinking-its-growing-very-very-slowly/ |archive-date=9 June 2013 |access-date=8 July 2014))</ref>

Nathan Smith of the ''[[National Business Review]]'' has said that despite Russia having potential, it did not win the new "Cold War" in the 1980s, and thus makes superpower status inaccurate.<ref>((cite news |author=Nathan Smith |date=8 March 2014 |title=Do not treat Russia like a superpower, it isn't |newspaper=[[National Business Review]] |url=http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/do-not-treat-russia-superpower-it-isnt-ns-152930 |url-status=dead |access-date=7 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715010833/http://www.nbr.co.nz/article/do-not-treat-russia-superpower-it-isnt-ns-152930 |archive-date=15 July 2014))</ref> [[Dmitry Medvedev]] predicted that if the Russian elite is not consolidated, Russia will disappear as a single state.<ref name="shevchenko">((Cite web|url=http://www.phisci.ru/files/issues/2015/02/RJPS_2015-02_Shevchenko.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160920214334/http://www.phisci.ru/files/issues/2015/02/RJPS_2015-02_Shevchenko.pdf|title=Философские науки&nbsp;— 2/2015. В.&nbsp;Н.&nbsp;Шевченко. К дискуссиям вокруг темы «Распад России»: В поисках оптимальной формы Российского государства|archive-date=20 September 2016))</ref> [[Vladimir Putin]] said the moment the [[North Caucasian Federal District|Caucasus]] leaves Russia, other territorial regions would follow.<ref>((Cite news |date=20 December 2011 |title=Владимир Путин: Отделение Кавказа от России приведет к развалу страны |language=ru |trans-title=Vladimir Putin: Separation of the Caucasus from Russia will lead to the collapse of the country |work=Российская газета |url=https://rg.ru/2011/12/20/reg-skfo/gudermes-anons.html |access-date=6 May 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210729223249/https://rg.ru/2011/12/20/reg-skfo/gudermes-anons.html |archive-date=29 July 2021))</ref>

After Russia's poor performance in the [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine]], some analysts questioned  Russia's military and power projection capabilities.<ref>((Cite web |title=Poor planning, low moral, weak supplies erode Russian invasion from within |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=poXV-cwbQDA |publisher=MSNBC))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=What's Wrong with Russia's military |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=kAp9lPRbmoc |via=[[YouTube]]))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Damage to Russian equipment raises questions about its military effectiveness |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=iaz8RrsRKyc |work=ABC News))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Why Russia's military operations have fallen short of expectations |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=w1eENwQOp_c |work=CBS News))</ref><ref>((Cite news |title=War in Ukraine: why is Russia's army so weak |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=x8C7aMeunE0))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=What make's the Russian army so ineffective |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=ejjKbpXn1S0 |via=[[YouTube]]))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Have Russia's invasion has Russia's invasion stalled again: Ukraine fights back |url=https://youtube.com/watch?v=ejjKbpXn1S0 |via=[[YouTube]]))</ref><ref>((Cite news |last=drezner |first=daniel |title=Is Russia still a great power? |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/2022/03/15/is-russia-still-great-power/))</ref>

=== Germany ===
The [[Federal Republic of Germany]] is a [[great power]] with [[Economy of Germany|a strong economy]]; it has the [[List of sovereign states in Europe by GDP (nominal)|largest economy in Europe]], the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|third-largest economy by nominal GDP]], and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|fifth-largest by PPP]]. As a global leader in several industrial, [[Science and technology in Germany|scientific and technological]] sectors, it is both the world's [[List of countries by exports|third-largest exporter]] and [[List of countries by imports|importer]] of goods. As a [[developed country]], which [[List of countries by Human Development Index|ranks]] very high on the [[Human Development Index]], it [[Social security in Germany|offers social security]] and a [[Healthcare in Germany|universal health care system]], environmental protections, and a [[Higher education in Germany|tuition-free university education]]. Germany is a member of the [[United Nations]], [[NATO]], the [[G7]], the [[G20]], and the [[OECD]]. It has the [[List of World Heritage sites in Germany|third-greatest number]] of [[UNESCO World Heritage Sites]].

Germany also has a [[social market economy]] with a highly skilled [[labour force]], a low level of corruption, and a high level of [[innovation]].<ref name="CIA Germany world factbook">((Cite web |title=Germany |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/germany/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109075739/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/germany |archive-date=9 January 2021 |access-date=29 March 2020 |website=The World Factbook |publisher=CIA))</ref><ref>((cite web |title=Corruption Perceptions Index 2019 |date=24 January 2020 |url=https://www.transparency.org/cpi2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200327160133/https://www.transparency.org/cpi2019 |archive-date=27 March 2020 |access-date=29 March 2020 |publisher=Transparency International))</ref><ref>((cite web |last=Schwab |first=Klaus |title=The Global Competitiveness Report 2018 |url=http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GCR2018/05FullReport/TheGlobalCompetitivenessReport2018.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200224135655/http://www3.weforum.org/docs/GCR2018/05FullReport/TheGlobalCompetitivenessReport2018.pdf |archive-date=24 February 2020 |access-date=29 March 2020 |page=11))</ref> It is the world's [[List of countries by exports|third-largest exporter]] and [[List of countries by imports|third-largest importer]] of goods,<ref name="CIA Germany world factbook" /> and has the [[List of sovereign states in Europe by GDP (nominal)|largest economy in Europe]], which is also the world's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP]],<ref name="wbpdf">((Cite web |last=Bajpai |first=Prableen |date=22 January 2020 |title=The 5 Largest Economies In The World And Their Growth In 2020 |url=https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/the-5-largest-economies-in-the-world-and-their-growth-in-2020-2020-01-22 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200321062928/https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/the-5-largest-economies-in-the-world-and-their-growth-in-2020-2020-01-22 |archive-date=21 March 2020 |publisher=NASDAQ))</ref> and the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|fifth-largest by PPP]].<ref>((Cite web |title=GDP, PPP (current international $) |url=https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ny.gdp.mktp.pp.cd?most_recent_value_desc=true |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330030525/https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/ny.gdp.mktp.pp.cd%3Fmost_recent_value_desc%3Dtrue |archive-date=30 March 2020 |access-date=29 March 2020 |publisher=World Bank))</ref> Its GDP per capita measured in purchasing power standards amounts to 121% of the EU27 average (100%).<ref>((cite web |title=GDP per capita in PPS |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tec00114&plugin=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150120063953/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/tgm/table.do?tab=table&init=1&language=en&pcode=tec00114&plugin=1 |archive-date=20 January 2015 |access-date=18 June 2020 |website=ec.europa.eu/eurostat |publisher=[[Eurostat]]))</ref> The [[Tertiary sector of industry|service sector]] contributes approximately 69% of the total GDP, industry 31%, and agriculture 1% ((as of|2017|lc=y)).<ref name="CIA Germany world factbook" /> The unemployment rate published by [[Eurostat]] amounts to 3.2% ((as of|2020|01|lc=y)), which is the fourth-lowest in the EU.<ref name="Eurostat">((Cite web |title=Unemployment statistics |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Unemployment_statistics |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200406062752/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Unemployment_statistics |archive-date=6 April 2020 |access-date=29 March 2020 |website=Eurostat))</ref>

Germany is part of the [[European Single Market|European single market]] which represents more than 450 million consumers.<ref>((cite web |date=5 July 2016 |title=The European single market |url=https://ec.europa.eu/growth/single-market_en |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200409110216/https://ec.europa.eu/growth/single-market_en |archive-date=9 April 2020 |access-date=30 March 2020 |publisher=European Commission))</ref> In 2017, the country accounted for 28% of the [[Eurozone]] economy according to the [[International Monetary Fund]].<ref name="imf.org">((cite web |title=Germany: Spend More at Home |url=http://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2017/07/05/na070717-germany-spend-more-at-home |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108101740/https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2017/07/05/na070717-germany-spend-more-at-home |archive-date=8 January 2018 |access-date=28 April 2018 |publisher=International Monetary Fund))</ref> Germany introduced the common European currency, the [[Euro]], in 2002.<ref name="euroc" /> Its monetary policy is set by the [[European Central Bank]], which is headquartered in [[Frankfurt]].<ref>((cite web |title=Monetary policy |url=https://www.bundesbank.de/en/tasks/monetary-policy/monetary-policy-625914 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620152755/https://www.bundesbank.de/en/tasks/monetary-policy/monetary-policy-625914 |archive-date=20 June 2021 |access-date=30 March 2020 |publisher=Bundesbank))</ref><ref name="frankfurt">((cite report |url=http://speri.dept.shef.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/SPERI-Brief-10-Frankfurt.pdf |title=Frankfurt as a financial centre after Brexit |last1=Lavery |first1=Scott |last2=Schmid |first2=Davide |publisher=University of Sheffield |access-date=30 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620152658/http://speri.dept.shef.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/SPERI-Brief-10-Frankfurt.pdf |archive-date=20 June 2021 |url-status=live |series=SPERI Global Political Economy Brief |year=2018))</ref>

Being home to the [[History of the automobile#19th century|modern car]], the [[automotive industry in Germany]] is regarded as one of the most competitive and innovative in the world,<ref>((cite web |last=Randall |first=Chris |date=10 December 2019 |title=CAM study reveals: German carmakers are most innovative |url=https://www.electrive.com/2019/12/10/cam-study-reveals-german-manufacturers-as-innovative/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200510175816/https://www.electrive.com/2019/12/10/cam-study-reveals-german-manufacturers-as-innovative/ |archive-date=10 May 2020 |publisher=Electrive))</ref> and is [[List of countries by motor vehicle production|the fourth-largest by production]].<ref>((cite web |title=2017 production statistics |url=http://www.oica.net/category/production-statistics/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131106174001/http://www.oica.net/category/production-statistics/ |archive-date=6 November 2013 |access-date=30 March 2020 |publisher=International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers))</ref> The top ten exports of Germany are vehicles, machinery, chemical goods, electronic products, electrical equipments, pharmaceuticals, transport equipments, basic metals, food products, and rubber and plastics.<ref name="Destatis">((Cite web |title=Foreign trade |url=http://www.destatis.de/EN/FactsFigures/NationalEconomyEnvironment/ForeignTrade/_Graphic/TradingGoods.png?__blob=poster |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150502033130/https://www.destatis.de/EN/FactsFigures/NationalEconomyEnvironment/ForeignTrade/_Graphic/TradingGoods.png?__blob=poster |archive-date=2 May 2015 |access-date=23 April 2015 |website=Statistiches Bundesamt))</ref>

Of the world's 500 largest stock-market-listed companies measured by revenue in 2019, the [[Fortune Global 500]], 29 are headquartered in Germany.<ref>((cite web |title=Global 500 |url=https://fortune.com/global500/2019/search/?hqcountry=Germany |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210620152854/https://fortune.com/global500/2019/search/?hqcountry=Germany |archive-date=20 June 2021 |access-date=30 March 2020 |website=Fortune))</ref> 40 major Germany-based companies are included in the [[DAX]], the German stock market index which is operated by [[Frankfurt Stock Exchange]].<ref>((cite web |title=DAX |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/DAX:IND |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200521105452/https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/DAX:IND |archive-date=21 May 2020 |access-date=30 March 2020 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.))</ref> Well-known international brands include [[Mercedes-Benz]], [[BMW]], [[Volkswagen]], [[Audi]], [[Siemens]], [[Allianz]], [[Adidas]], [[Porsche]], [[Robert Bosch GmbH|Bosch]] and [[Deutsche Telekom]].<ref>((cite web |title=Brand value of the leading 10 most valuable German brands in 2019 |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/235173/brand-value-of-the-leading-10-most-valuable-german-brands/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210192215/https://www.statista.com/statistics/235173/brand-value-of-the-leading-10-most-valuable-german-brands/ |archive-date=10 December 2019 |access-date=30 March 2020 |website=Statista))</ref> Berlin is a [[Startup ecosystem|hub]] for [[Startup company|startup companies]] and has become the leading location for venture capital funded firms in the European Union.<ref>((Cite web |last=Frost |first=Simon |date=28 August 2015 |title=Berlin outranks London in start-up investment |url=http://www.euractiv.com/sections/innovation-industry/berlin-outranks-london-start-investment-317140 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151106224621/http://www.euractiv.com/sections/innovation-industry/berlin-outranks-london-start-investment-317140 |archive-date=6 November 2015 |access-date=28 October 2015 |website=euractiv.com))</ref> Germany is recognised for its large portion of specialised [[small and medium enterprises]], known as the ((lang|de|[[Mittelstand]])) model.<ref>((cite news |last=Dakers |first=Marion |date=11 May 2017 |title=Secrets of growth: the power of Germany's Mittelstand |website=The Telegraph |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/connect/small-business/driving-growth/secrets-growth-power-of-germany-mittelstand/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190306134928/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/connect/small-business/driving-growth/secrets-growth-power-of-germany-mittelstand/ |archive-date=6 March 2019))</ref> These companies represent 48% global market leaders in their segments, labelled [[hidden champions]].<ref>((cite web |last=Bayley |first=Caroline |date=17 August 2017 |title=Germany's 'hidden champions' of the Mittelstand |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-40796571 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190522010803/https://www.bbc.com/news/business-40796571 |archive-date=22 May 2019 |publisher=BBC News))</ref>

[[Research and development]] efforts form an integral part of the German economy.<ref>((Cite web |date=2014 |title=Federal Report on Research and Innovation 2014 |url=http://www.bmbf.de/pub/Federal_Report_on_Research_and_Innovation_2014.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160514110947/http://www.bmbf.de/pub/Federal_Report_on_Research_and_Innovation_2014.pdf |archive-date=14 May 2016 |access-date=26 March 2015 |publisher=Federal Ministry of Education and Research))</ref> In 2018 Germany ranked fourth globally in terms of number of science and engineering research papers published.<ref>((cite web |last=McCarthy |first=Niall |date=13 January 2020 |title=The countries leading the world in scientific research |url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/top-ten-countries-leading-scientific-publications-in-the-world/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200312073822/https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/top-ten-countries-leading-scientific-publications-in-the-world |archive-date=12 March 2020 |publisher=World Economic Forum))</ref> Germany was ranked 9th in the [[Global Innovation Index]] in 2019 and 2020.<ref>((Cite web |title=Release of the Global Innovation Index 2020: Who Will Finance Innovation? |url=https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2020/index.html |access-date=2 September 2021 |publisher=WIPO))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Global Innovation Index 2019 |url=https://www.wipo.int/global_innovation_index/en/2019/index.html |access-date=2 September 2021 |publisher=WIPO))</ref> Research institutions in Germany include the [[Max Planck Society]], the [[Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres|Helmholtz Association]], and the [[Fraunhofer Society]] and the [[Leibniz Association]].<ref>((cite journal |last=Boytchev |first=Hristio |date=27 March 2019 |title=An introduction to the complexities of the German research scene |journal=Nature |volume=567 |issue=7749 |pages=S34–S35 |bibcode=2019Natur.567S..34B |doi=10.1038/d41586-019-00910-7 |pmid=30918381 |doi-access=free))</ref> Germany is the largest contributor to the [[European Space Agency]].<ref name=":5"/>

=== Japan ===
[[File:The_Tokyo_Stock_Exchange_-_main_room_3.jpg|thumbnail|[[Tokyo Stock Exchange]], the [[List of stock exchanges|third largest stock exchange in the world]] by [[market capitalization]], as well as the 2nd largest stock market in Asia]]

The [[State of Japan]] is a [[great power]]<ref>((Cite web |last=Glosserman |first=Brad |date=17 August 2020 |title=Japan and the 'great power competition' |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2020/08/17/commentary/japan-great-power-competition/ |access-date=8 April 2021 |website=The Japan Times |language=en-US))</ref> and a member of numerous international organizations, including the [[United Nations]] (since 1956), the [[OECD]], and the [[Group of Seven]]. Although it has [[Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution|renounced its right to declare war]], the country maintains [[Japan Self-Defense Forces|Self-Defense Forces]] that rank as one of the world's strongest militaries. After World War II, Japan experienced record growth in [[Japanese economic miracle|an economic miracle]], becoming the [[List of countries by largest historical GDP|second-largest economy]] in the world by 1990. Japanese economy was the world's second largest economy in terms of GDP until it was surpassed by China in 2010. ((As of|2023)), [[Economy of Japan|the country's economy]] is the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|fourth-largest by nominal GDP]] as well as the [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|fourth-largest by PPP]]. The country is the [[List of countries by total wealth|third-largest]] in the world by total wealth. It is also ranked "very high" on the [[Human Development Index]].

In the 1980s, many political and [[financial analyst|economic analysts]] predicted that [[Japan]] would eventually accede to superpower status, due to its large population, huge [[gross domestic product]] and high [[economic growth]] at that time. Japan was expected to eventually surpass the economy of the United States, which never happened.<ref name="Zakaria, F 2008">((cite book |last=Zakaria |first=Fareed |url=https://archive.org/details/postamericanworl00zaka_199 |title=The Post-American World |date=2008 |publisher=W. W. Norton and Company |isbn=978-0-393-06235-9 |page=[https://archive.org/details/postamericanworl00zaka_199/page/n225 210] |author-link=Fareed Zakaria |url-access=limited))</ref><ref>((Cite news |date=12 November 2009 |title=Land of the setting sun |newspaper=The Economist |url=https://www.economist.com/business/2009/11/12/land-of-the-setting-sun))</ref><ref>((cite magazine |date=4 July 1988 |title=Japan From Superrich To Superpower |url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,967823,00.html |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]]))</ref> However, Japan is considered a [[Cultural Superpower|cultural superpower]] in terms of the large-scale influence Japanese [[Japanese cuisine|food]], [[Music of Japan|music]], [[Video gaming in Japan|video games]], [[manga]], [[anime]] and [[Cinema of Japan|movies]] have on the world.<ref>((Cite web |date=31 January 2015 |title=How Japan became a pop culture superpower |url=https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/how-japan-became-a-pop-culture-superpower/|website=The Spectator))</ref><ref>((Cite web |last=Nagata |first=Kazuaki |date=7 September 2010 |title='Anime' makes Japan superpower |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2010/09/07/reference/anime-makes-japan-superpower/ |via=Japan Times Online))</ref><ref>((cite web |last1=Tamaki |first1=Taku |title=Japan has turned its culture into a powerful political tool |url=http://theconversation.com/japan-has-turned-its-culture-into-a-powerful-political-tool-72821 |website=The Conversation |date=26 April 2017 |language=en))</ref><ref>((Cite news |date=18 July 2020 |title='Pure Invention': How Japan's pop culture became the 'lingua franca' of the internet |work=[[The Japan Times]] |url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/culture/2020/07/18/books/pure-invention-jpop-culture/))</ref><ref>((Cite news |date=27 May 2020 |title=How Japan's global image morphed from military empire to eccentric pop-culture superpower |publisher=[[Quartz (publication)|Quartz]] |url=https://qz.com/1806376/japans-image-has-changed-from-fierce-to-lovable-over-the-decades/amp/))</ref> In 2021, [[U.S. News & World Report]] ranked Japan as the most culturally influential country in Asia and 5th in the world.<ref name=":4" />

Japan is also considered to be a technological power, being the leader in the [[Automotive industry in Japan|automotive]], [[Electronics industry in Japan|electronics]] (though its present-day position in the electronics field had declined by the 2010s<ref>((cite web |date=2 April 2013 |title=What happened to Japan's electronic giants? |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-21992700 |publisher=BBC))</ref>) and [[Japanese robotics|robotics]] industries.<ref>((cite web |date=18 May 2021 |title=Top 10 Countries for Technological Expertise, Ranked by Perception |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/slideshows/top-10-countries-for-technological-expertise-ranked-by-perception |website=U.S. News & World Report))</ref><ref>((cite web |title=Japan, the World's Leading "Robot Nation" |url=https://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/whyutokyo/wj_003.html |publisher=The University of Tokyo))</ref> As of 2022, 47 of the [[Fortune Global 500]] companies are based in Japan.<ref name="Global 500 2015">((cite web | url=http://fortune.com/global500/ | title=Global 500 (updated) | work=[[Fortune (magazine)|Fortune]]))</ref>
Japan's most valuable and internationally known brands include: [[Toyota]], [[Honda]], [[Sony]], [[Soft Bank]], [[Subaru]], [[Nissan]], [[Mazda]], [[Canon Inc.]], [[Uniqlo]] and [[Nintendo]].<ref>((cite web |date=7 June 2021 |title=Brand value of the leading 50 most valuable Japanese brands in 2021 |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/235054/brand-value-of-the-leading-30-most-valuable-global-japanese-brands/ |website=Statista))</ref>

Japan was ranked as the world's [[List of countries by Military Strength Index|fourth most-powerful military]] in 2015.<ref name="CreditSuisse2015">((cite report |url=http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=EE7A6A5D-D9D5-6204-E9E6BB426B47D054 |title=The End of Globalization or a more Multipolar World? |last1=O’Sullivan |first1=Michael |last2=Subramanian |first2=Krithika |date=17 October 2015 |publisher=[[Credit Suisse]] AG |access-date=14 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215235711/http://publications.credit-suisse.com/tasks/render/file/index.cfm?fileid=EE7A6A5D-D9D5-6204-E9E6BB426B47D054 |archive-date=15 February 2018 |url-status=dead))</ref> The military capabilities of the [[Japan Self-Defense Forces]] are held back by the pacifist [[Constitution of Japan|1947 constitution]]. However, there is a gradual push for a [[constitutional amendment]]. On 18 September 2015, the National Diet enacted the [[2015 Japanese military legislation]], a series of laws that allow Japan's Self-Defense Forces to [[Collective security|collective self-defense]] of allies in combat for the first time under its constitution.<ref>((cite news |last=Slavin |first=Erik |date=18 September 2015 |title=Japan enacts major changes to its self-defense laws |newspaper=[[Stars and Stripes (newspaper)|Stars and Stripes]] |location=Tokyo |url=http://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/japan-enacts-major-changes-to-its-self-defense-laws-1.368783 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619063041/https://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/japan-enacts-major-changes-to-its-self-defense-laws-1.368783 |archive-date=19 June 2018))</ref> In May 2017, former Japanese Prime Minister [[Shinzo Abe]] set a 2020 deadline for revising Article 9, which would legitimize the JSDF in the Constitution.<ref>((cite web |last=Diplomat |first=Yuki Tatsumi, The |title=Abe's New Vision for Japan's Constitution |url=http://thediplomat.com/2017/05/abes-new-vision-for-japans-constitution/ |access-date=18 May 2017 |website=thediplomat.com))</ref>

=== India ===
((Main|India as a potential superpower))

((See also|Indian Century))
[[File:Historic GDP per capita in India.svg|thumb|GDP per capita in India, since 1600. India continued to be one of the wealthiest countries in the world from 1 CE to [[British India]].]]
The [[Republic of India]] is considered a great power, but the country was not considered a great power until recently, given its [[History of India (1947–present)|recent history]] and [[Economy of India|economic]] and [[Indian Armed Forces|military expansion]]. There is no collective agreement among observers for the status of India.<ref>((cite journal |last=Perkovich |first=George |title=Is India a Major Power? |url=http://www.twq.com/04winter/docs/04winter_perkovich.pdf |url-status=dead |journal=The Washington Quarterly |issue=27.1 Winter 2003–04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080227014858/http://www.twq.com/04winter/docs/04winter_perkovich.pdf |archive-date=27 February 2008 |access-date=13 December 2007))</ref><ref name="The United States and the Great Powers1">((cite book |last=Buzan |first=Barry |title=The United States and the Great Powers |publisher=Polity Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-7456-3375-6 |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |pages=71))</ref> However, many scholars believe that India is a great power or [[India as an emerging superpower|emerging]] as so.<ref name=":1">((cite web |author=Dilip Mohite |date=Spring 1993 |title=Swords and Ploughshares- India: The Fourth Great Power? |url=http://www.acdis.uiuc.edu/Research/S&Ps/1993-Sp/S&P_VII-3/great_power.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901150133/http://www.acdis.uiuc.edu/Research/S%26Ps/1993-Sp/S%26P_VII-3/great_power.html |archive-date=1 September 2006 |access-date=13 December 2007 |publisher=Arms Control, Disarmament, and International Security (ACDIS) |version=Vol. 7, No. 3))</ref><ref name="Encarta a">[http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761590309/Great_Powers.html Encarta – Great Powers] ((webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091031190936/http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761590309/Great_Powers.html|date=31 October 2009))</ref> It maintains one of the [[List of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnel|largest armed forces]] and [[List of countries by military expenditures|military budgets]] in the world.<ref name=":2">((cite book |author=Zbigniew Brzezinski |url=https://archive.org/details/strategicvisiona0000brze |title=Strategic Vision: America & the Crisis of Global Power |date=24 January 2012 |publisher=Basic Books |isbn=9780465029549 |url-access=registration))</ref> Since the 1990s, [[Indian Culture|Indian culture]] has become more prominent around the world. [[Hindi cinema|Bollywood]] movies and [[Indian cuisine]] are some of the major aspects of the culture of India.<ref>((Cite web |title=Watch: SS Rajamouli Gets A Standing Ovation For His Film RRR In The US |url=https://www.ndtv.com/entertainment/watch-ss-rajamouli-gets-a-standing-ovation-for-his-film-rrr-in-the-us-3395432 |access-date=2022-12-16 |website=NDTV.com))</ref> Although India maintains a position as a major economic and military power, it is not a permanent member of the [[United Nations Security Council]].

India has seen considerable coverage of its potential of becoming a superpower, both in the media and among academics.<ref name="rising">((cite magazine |last=Zakaria |first=Fareed |date=5 March 2006 |title=India Rising |url=http://www.newsweek.com/india-rising-106259 |magazine=Newsweek |access-date=2 August 2014))</ref><ref>((cite web |last=Giridharadas |first=Anand |date=21 July 2005 |title=India welcomed as new sort of superpower |url=https://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-111273946.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140629120629/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P1-111273946.html |archive-date=29 June 2014 |access-date=2 August 2014 ))</ref> In 2006, ''[[Newsweek]]'' and the ''[[International New York Times|International Herald Tribune]]'' joined several academics in discussing India's potential of becoming a superpower.<ref name="rising" /><ref name="IndiaSuperpower">((cite web |last=Ambrose |first=Jeffrey R. |title=India: A Superpower in the Making? |url=http://realtruth.org/articles/434-iasitm.html |access-date=2 August 2014 |publisher=RealTruth.org |archive-date=29 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170729101405/https://realtruth.org/articles/434-iasitm.html |url-status=dead ))</ref>

[[Anil Kumar Gupta|Anil Gupta]] believes that due to India's functional institutions of democracy, the country will emerge as a desirable, entrepreneurial and resource and energy-efficient superpower in the near future. He had predicted the nation's emergence as a full-fledged economic superpower by 2025. In addition, he believed that India has the potential to serve as a leading example of how to combine rapid economic growth with fairness towards and inclusion of those at the bottom rungs of the ladder and of efficient resource utilization, especially in energy.<ref>((cite news |date=9 January 2011 |title=India 2025: What kind of superpower? |publisher=Economictimes.indiatimes.com |url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/opinion/et-commentary/india-2025-what-kind-of-superpower/articleshow/7238752.cms |access-date=10 February 2012))</ref> India briefly became the world's fastest growing economy in 2015 but growth declined below China's since 2018.<ref>((cite news |date=9 July 2015 |title=India to beat China again as fastest-growing economy in 2016: IMF |url=http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2015-07-09/news/64243978_1_growth-projection-world-economic-outlook-update-fastest-growing-economy |access-date=20 November 2015))</ref><ref>((Cite news |date=31 May 2019 |title=India loses place as world's fastest-growing economy |language=en-GB |publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/business-48478028 |access-date=18 October 2020))</ref>

Economists and Researchers at [[Harvard University]] have projected India's 7% projected annual growth rate through 2024 would continue to put it ahead of China, making India the fastest growing economy in the world.<ref>((cite news |date=7 May 2015 |title=New Growth Projections Predict the Rise of India, East Africa and Fall of Oil Economies |url=http://www.hks.harvard.edu/news-events/news/articles/new-growth-projections |access-date=12 April 2016 |archive-date=4 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170704133342/https://www.hks.harvard.edu/news-events/news/articles/new-growth-projections |url-status=dead ))</ref><ref>((cite news |date=1 January 2016 |title=India Will Be Fastest-Growing Economy for Coming Decade, Harvard Researchers Predict |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2016/01/01/india-will-be-fastest-growing-economy-for-coming-decade-harvard-researchers-predict/ |access-date=12 April 2016))</ref> In 2017, Center for International Development at Harvard University, published a research study,<ref name="2025 Projections Harvard">((cite web |title=New 2025 Global Growth Projections Predict China's Further Slowdown and the Continued Rise of India |url=http://atlas.cid.harvard.edu/rankings/growth-predictions/ |access-date=10 July 2017 |work=[[Harvard University]]))</ref> projecting that India has emerged<ref name="2025 Projections Harvard" /> as the economic pole of global growth by surpassing China and is expected to maintain its lead over the coming decade.<ref name="2025 Projections Harvard" />

Robyn Meredith pointed out in 2007 that the average incomes of European and Americans are higher than Chinese and Indians, and hundreds of millions of Chinese as well as Indians live in poverty, she also suggested that economic growth of these nations has been the most important factor in reducing global poverty of the last two decades, as per the World Bank report.((Citation needed|date=November 2021))[[Amy Chua]] adds to this, that India has made tremendous strides to fix its internal problems, stating that some of India's achievements, such as working to dismantle the centuries-old [[Caste|caste system]] and maintaining the world's largest diverse democracy, are historically unprecedented.<ref name="Chua, A 2007">((cite book |author=Amy Chua |url=https://archive.org/details/dayofempirehowhy00chua_0 |title=Day of Empire: How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance – and Why They Fall |publisher=Random House |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-385-51284-8))</ref>

[[Fareed Zakaria]] pointing out that India's young population coupled with the [[List of countries by English-speaking population|second-largest]] [[English language|English]]-speaking population in the world could give India an advantage over China. He also believes that while other industrial countries will face a youth gap, India will have many young people, or in other words, workers, and by 2050, its per capita income will rise by twenty times its current level. According to Zakaria, another strength that India has is that its democratic government has lasted for 60 years, stating that a democracy can provide for long-term stability, which has given India a name.<ref>Zakaria, F. (2008) ''The Post-American World''. W. W. Norton and Company, ((ISBN|978-0-393-06235-9))</ref>

[[Clyde V. Prestowitz Jr.]], founder and president of the Economic Strategy Institute and former counselor to the Secretary of Commerce in the [[Presidency of Ronald Reagan|Reagan administration]], has predicted that "It is going to be India's century. India is going to be the biggest economy in the world. It is going to be the biggest superpower of the 21st century."<ref>((cite web |year=2006 |title=India will be the biggest superpower |url=http://www.rediff.com/money/2006/mar/29minter.htm |access-date=19 July 2014 |work=Rediff))</ref>

According to the report named "Indian Century: Defining India's Place in a Rapidly Changing Global Economy" by [[IBM]] Institute for Business Value, India is predicted to be among the world's highest-growth nations over the coming years.<ref name="IBM India Century">((cite journal |last=Subramanian |first=Samanth |date=1 May 2012 |title=The Outlier:The inscrutable politics of Subramanian Swamy |url=http://www.caravanmagazine.in/reportage/outlier |journal=The Caravan: A Journal of Politics & Culture |access-date=29 March 2018))</ref><ref name="IBM 21">((cite news |last1=Team |first1=BS Web |date=10 December 2015 |title=India to be world's highest growth nation in 21st century: IBM study |work=[[Business Standard]] |url=http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/india-to-be-world-s-highest-growth-nation-in-21st-century-ibm-study-115121000918_1.html |access-date=11 February 2016))</ref><ref name="IBM">((cite web |title=21st century is India's century: IBM chief Virginia Rometty |url=http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/economy/21st-century-is-indias-century-ibm-chief-virginia-rometty_1963021.html |access-date=11 February 2016 |work=[[Moneycontrol.com]]|date=14 July 2015 ))</ref>

=== Brazil ===
The [[Brazil|Federative Republic of Brazil]] has been cited by former US president [[Barack Obama]] to be a great power,<ref>((Cite web |date=2015-06-30 |title=Durante encontro com Dilma, Obama diz ver Brasil como 'potência global' |url=https://www.bbc.com/portuguese/noticias/2015/06/150630_dilma_washington_desmatamento_jf_ac_cc |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=BBC News Brasil |language=pt-BR))</ref><ref>((Cite web |date=2015-06-30 |title=Vemos o Brasil como potência global, diz Obama à GloboNews |url=https://www.cartacapital.com.br/blogs/midiatico/vemos-o-brasil-como-potencia-global-diz-obama-a-globonews-2265/ |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=CartaCapital |language=pt-BR))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Em defesa de Dilma, Obama diz que Brasil é potência global |url=https://valor.globo.com/brasil/noticia/2015/07/01/em-defesa-de-dilma-obama-diz-que-brasil-e-potencia-global.ghtml |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=Valor Econômico |date=July 2015 |language=pt-br))</ref> and has been cited as an 'environmental superpower'.<ref>((Cite news |last=Carrington |first=Damian |date=2010-08-05 |title=Can Brazil become the world's first environmental superpower? |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/aug/05/brazil-environmental-superpower |access-date=2023-02-21 |issn=0261-3077))</ref><ref>((Cite web |title=Brazil is an ecological superpower |url=https://www.gov.br/en/government-of-brazil/latest-news/2022/brazil-is-an-ecological-superpower |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=Serviços e Informações do Brasil |language=en))</ref> This unique environmental heritage positions inputs responsibilities in the preservation of [[Amazon rainforest|the Amazon]], creating a [[The Amazon Fund|fund for mainteance of the rainforest]] and a pact to preserve the rainforest.<ref>((Cite news |last1=Bearak |first1=Max |last2=Andreoni |first2=Manuela |date=2022-11-14 |title=Brazil, Indonesia and Congo Sign Rainforest Protection Pact |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/14/climate/brazil-indonesia-democratic-congo-rainforest-protection-pact.html |access-date=2023-02-21 |issn=0362-4331))</ref><ref>((Cite news |last=Greenfield |first=Patrick |date=2022-11-05 |title=Brazil, Indonesia and DRC in talks to form 'Opec of rainforests' |language=en-GB |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/nov/05/brazil-indonesia-drc-cop27-conservation-opec-rainforests-aoe |access-date=2023-02-21 |issn=0261-3077))</ref> Brazil has been central in the discussions concerning the [[Climate change scenario|climate changes]] and hosting the [[United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development]].
[[File:Planta Braskem.jpg|thumb|[[Braskem]] plant, largest [[petrochemical]] company in Latin America<ref>((Cite web |title=Largest petrochemical companies in Latin America 2020 |url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/1095681/latin-america-petrochemical-companies-sales/ |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=Statista |language=en))</ref>]]
The [[economy of Brazil]] is historically the largest in [[Latin America]] and the [[Southern Hemisphere]] in nominal terms. The Brazilian economy is the third largest in the [[Americas]]. The economy is a [[Newly industrialized country|middle income]] [[Developing country|developing]] [[mixed economy]]. In 2022, according to [[International Monetary Fund]] (IMF),<ref>((Cite web |title=Report for Selected Countries and Subjects |url=https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WEO/weo-database/2022/April/weo-report |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=IMF |language=en))</ref> [[Brazil]] has the 10th largest gross domestic product expenditure (GDP) and has the 8th largest purchasing power parity. Brazil is a member of diverse economic organizations, such as [[Mercosur]], [[Forum for the Progress and Development of South America|Prosur]], [[G8+5]], [[G-20 major economies|G20]], [[World Trade Organization|WTO]], [[Paris Club]], [[Cairns Group]], and is advanced to be a permanent member of the [[OECD]].<ref>((Cite web |title=Joint Press Release by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Office of the President's Chief of Staff and the Ministry of Economy – Brazil is invited to start the OECD accession process |url=https://www.gov.br/mre/en/contact-us/press-area/press-releases/joint-press-release-by-the-ministry-of-foreign-affairs-the-office-of-the-president2019s-chief-of-staff-and-the-ministry-of-economy-2013-brazil-is-invited-to-start-the-oecd-accession-process |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=Ministério das Relações Exteriores |language=en))</ref>

Is the largest country in [[South America]] and in [[Latin America]]. At 8.5 million square kilometers (3,300,000 sq mi) and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's [[List of countries and dependencies by area|fifth-largest country by area]] and the [[List of countries and dependencies by population|seventh most populous]].

Brazil is member of various international organizations, and is actively engaged in the [[reform of the United Nations Security Council]]. It formed the [[G4 nations|G4]] alliance with [[Germany]], [[India]], and [[Japan]] for the purpose of supporting each other's bids for permanent seats. Their proposal calls for an enlarged Security Council, expanded in both the permanent and non-permanent categories of membership. A wide coalition of member states from [[United Nations Regional Groups|all regional groups of the United Nations]] supported the initiative.

As a [[Member states of the United Nations|founding member]] of the [[United Nations]], Brazil has a long tradition of contributing to peacekeeping operations. Brazil has participated in 33 United Nations peacekeeping operations and contributed with over 27,000 troops. Currently, Brazil contributes with more than 2,200 troops, military observers and police officers in three continents.

Brazil has led the military component of the [[United Nations Stabilisation Mission in Haiti]] (MINUSTAH)<ref>((Cite web |title=MINUSTAH |url=https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/mission/minustah |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=United Nations Peacekeeping |language=en))</ref> since its establishment in 2004. The mission's Force Commander is Major General Fernando Rodrigues Goulart of the [[Brazilian Army]]. Brazil is the biggest troop contributing country to MINUSTAH, with 2,200 active military personnel.

=== Italy ===
The [[Italy|Italian Republic]] has been referred to as a great European power with almost the same power as Germany, France, and the UK.,<ref>((Cite book|url=https://repository.upenn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5238&context=edissertations&fbclid=IwAR0Ofqcv143TtWLhAAuN_hPILXgBvvk3In3aQ6_Zy6N7HWCFeJ-iopDeJg8|title=''Great Power, Arms, And Alliances''|date=2019|last=Carter|first= Keith Lambert|language=en|quote='' U.S., Russia, China, France, Germany, U.K. and Italy - Table on page 56,72 (Major powers-great power criteria) ''|access-date=25 January 2021))</ref><ref>((Cite news|url=https://www.defenceconnect.com.au/key-enablers|title=''Clarifying the nation's role strengthens the impact of a National Security Strategy 2019''|last=Kuper|first=Stephen|language=en|quote=''Traditionally, great powers have been defined by their global reach and ability to direct the flow of international affairs. There are a number of recognised great powers within the context of contemporary international relations – with Great Britain, France, India and Russia recognised as nuclear capable great powers, while Germany, Italy and Japan are identified as conventional great powers''|access-date=22 January 2020|archive-date=10 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211210044814/https://www.defenceconnect.com.au/key-enablers|url-status=dead))</ref> but due to internal political instability, a large public debt,<ref name=":0">((Cite journal |last1=Holtemöller |first1=Oliver |last2=Knedlik |first2=Tobias |last3=Lindner |first3=Axel |date=2018 |title=On the Risk of a Sovereign Debt Crisis in Italy |url=https://www.intereconomics.eu/contents/year/2018/number/6/article/on-the-risk-of-a-sovereign-debt-crisis-in-italy.html |journal=Intereconomics |language=en |volume=2018 |issue=6 |pages=316–319|doi=10.1007/s10272-018-0775-y |hdl=10419/213187 |s2cid=158807558 |hdl-access=free ))</ref> a diminishing economic productivity, low economic growth in the last ten years<ref name=":0" /><ref>((Cite web |date=26 May 2021 |title=Why Italy's Economy Stopped Growing |url=https://www.newswise.com/articles/why-italy-s-economy-stopped-growing |website=newswise.com))</ref> and a significant Centre-North/South socio-economic divide, it is considered as the [[least of the great powers]]. Due to the lack of international influence in recent years, Italy is now considered as a European power instead of a global power.

Italy's great power strength includes a vast advanced economy<ref>((Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ev_pAgAAQBAJ&q=great+powers+US+Russia+China+Germany+France+Italy+UK+Japan&pg=PA47 |title = Still Ours to Lead: America, Rising Powers, and the Tension between Rivalry and Restraint|isbn = 9780815725138|last1 = Jones|first1 = Bruce D.|date = 17 March 2014| publisher=Brookings Institution Press ))</ref><ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/09/the-global-economic-balance-of-power-is-shifting|title = The global economic balance of power is shifting|website=Weforum.org| date=20 September 2017 ))</ref> (in terms of [[national wealth]], net wealth per capita and national [[List of countries by nominal GDP|GDP]]), a strong manufacturing industry,<ref>((cite web|url=http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Manufacturing_statistics_-_NACE_Rev._2 |title=Manufacturing statistics |publisher=[[Eurostat]] |date=November 2015 |access-date=8 February 2015))</ref> a large luxury goods market,<ref>((Cite web|url=http://s24ore.it/2GuYkA|title=Italy remains the third market for luxury goods|website=S24ore.it|access-date=10 March 2022))</ref> a large [[List of countries by government budget|national budget]] and the third largest [[gold reserve]] in the world. It has one of the largest [[Special drawing rights|SDRs]] and Voting Power in the [[International Monetary Fund#Voting power|IMF]].<ref>Andre Melville, Yuri Polunin, [[Mikhail Ilyin]] (2011). [https://books.google.com/books?id=Vnp2pOS5v9IC&q=%22major+powers%22+exertin+maximun+influence+on+the+International+Arena+&pg=PA202 Political atlas of the Modern World]</ref> The country is a [[Power (international relations)#Power as status|cultural superpower]]<ref>((cite web |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-countries/influence-rankings|title=Cultural Influence rankings |publisher=USnews |date=2021 |access-date=24 May 2021))</ref> and it has close ties with the rest of the [[Christendom|Catholic world]] as the home of the [[Pope]]. Italy is a key player in maintaining [[international security]], especially in the wider Mediterranean region,<ref group="note">The concept of ''Mediterraneo Allargato'' (Enlarged Mediterranean) includes the [[Horn of Africa]], the [[Balkans]] and the [[MENA]] region</ref> by performing [[air policing]] duties for its allies and commanding multinational forces in foreign countries. The country has therefore developed considerable military capabilities by building two [[aircraft carrier]]s and establishing some [[List of countries with overseas military bases|overseas military bases]]. The Italian navy was the first to launch an [[intermediate-range ballistic missile]] from the sea, an [[UGM-27 Polaris]] launched from the cruiser ''[[Italian cruiser Giuseppe Garibaldi (1936)|Giuseppe Garibaldi]]''. The country is home to two nuclear bases and, as part of the [[Nuclear sharing|NATO nuclear sharing program]], therefore has a retaliatory nuclear capacity despite nominally being a non-nuclear state. According to the former Italian President [[Francesco Cossiga]], Italy's plans of nuclear retaliation during the [[Cold War]] consisted of targeting nuclear weapons in [[Czechoslovakia]] and [[Hungary]] in case the Soviet Union waged nuclear war against NATO.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2018/01/17/anche-litalia-coinvolta-nel-riarmo-nucleare-da-noi-settanta-testate14.html|title = Anche l'Italia coinvolta nel riarmo nucleare da noi settanta testate |website=Ricera.repubblica.it|date = 17 January 2018 ))</ref> He acknowledged the presence of U.S. nuclear weapons in Italy, and speculated about the possible presence of British and French nuclear weapons.<ref>((cite web |url=http://notizie.tiscali.it/articoli/politica/08/22/cossiga_atomica_in_italia_123.html |title=Cossiga: "In Italia ci sono bombe atomiche Usa" |language=it |publisher=Tiscali |access-date=18 September 2015 |archive-date=28 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150928225725/http://notizie.tiscali.it/articoli/politica/08/22/cossiga_atomica_in_italia_123.html |url-status=dead ))</ref>
Italy secretly developed its own [[Italian nuclear weapons program|nuclear weapons program]], and one in collaboration with France and Germany, but abandoned such projects when it joined the nuclear sharing program.<ref>((cite web|url=http://legislature.camera.it/_dati/leg05/lavori/stenografici/sed0073/sed0073.pdf|title=SEDUTA POMERIDIANA DI GIOVEDÌ 23 GENNAIO 1969|website=Legislature.camera.it|access-date=10 March 2022))</ref><ref>((Cite book | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dmUrPe1ZJ3MC&q=programma+nucleare+Italia-Francia-Germania&pg=PA122 | title=A volte ritornano: Il nucleare : La proliferazione nucleare ieri, oggi e soprattutto domani| isbn=9788816407107| last1=Baracca| first1=Angelo| year=2005| publisher=Editoriale Jaca Book))</ref> The country has developed the [[Anti-ballistic missile|ABM]] [[PAAMS]] system.<ref>((Cite web|url=https://www.mbda-systems.com/about-us/mbda-worldwide/eurosam/|title=Eurosam|website=MBDA|access-date=10 March 2022))</ref> It has developed several space-launch vehicles such as [[Alfa (rocket)|Alfa]] and more recently [[Vega (rocket)|Vega]]. In more recent years, under the auspices of [[European Space Agency|European space agency]], it has demonstrated the [[Atmospheric entry|reentry]] and landing of a spacecraft, the [[Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle]]. Italy is home to one of two ground operations centres of the [[Galileo (satellite navigation)|Galileo global satellite navigation system]].

Besides, Italy has as one of the most advanced economies in the world as the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|eighth-largest economy]] by nominal GDP (third in the [[European Union]]), the sixth-largest [[List of countries by total wealth|national wealth]] and the third-largest central bank [[gold reserve]]. It ranks very high in [[life expectancy]], quality of life,<ref name="economist.com">[https://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf The Economist Intelligence Unit's quality-of-life index] ((webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120802135752/http://www.economist.com/media/pdf/QUALITY_OF_LIFE.pdf |date=2 August 2012 )), Economist, 2005</ref> [[Healthcare in Italy|healthcare]],<ref>((cite web |url=http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html |title=The World Health Organization's ranking of the world's health systems |publisher=Photius.com |access-date=7 September 2015))</ref> and education. The country is considered a great power and it plays a prominent role in [[regional power|regional]]<ref>Gabriele Abbondanza, ''Italy as a Regional Power: the African Context from National Unification to the Present Day'' (Rome: Aracne, 2016)</ref><ref>"''[[Operation Alba]] may be considered one of the most important instances in which Italy has acted as a regional power, taking the lead in executing a technically and politically coherent and determined strategy.''" See Federiga Bindi, ''Italy and the European Union'' (Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 2011), p. 171.</ref> and global<ref name="Canada Among Nationsb">((cite book |title=Canada Among Nations, 2004: Setting Priorities Straight |date=17 January 2005 |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press – MQUP |isbn=978-0-7735-2836-9 |page=85 |url=((Google books|nTKBdY5HBeUC |keywords=Canada%20Among%20Nations%2C%202004%3A%20Setting%20Priorities Straight |text= |plainurl=yes))|access-date=13 June 2016)) ("''The United States is the sole world's superpower. France, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom are great powers''")</ref><ref name="Milena Steriob">((cite book |last1=Sterio |first1=Milena |title=The right to self-determination under international law : "selfistans", secession and the rule of the great powers |date=2013 |publisher=Routledge |location=Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon |isbn=978-0-415-66818-7 |page=xii (preface) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-QuI6n_OVMYC&q=The%20Right%20to%20Self-determination%20Under%20International%20Law%3A%20%22selfistans%22%2C%20Secession%20and%20the%20Rule%20of%20the%20Great%20Powers |access-date=13 June 2016)) ("''The great powers are super-sovereign states: an exclusive club of the most powerful states economically, militarily, politically and strategically. These states include veto-wielding members of the United Nations Security Council (United States, United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia), as well as economic powerhouses such as Germany, Italy and Japan.''")</ref> economic, military, cultural, and diplomatic affairs. Italy is a [[Inner Six|founding]] and [[EU Three|leading]] member of the [[European Union]] and a member of numerous international institutions, including the [[United Nations]], [[NATO]], the [[OECD]], the [[Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe]], the [[World Trade Organization]], the [[Group of Seven]], the [[G20]], the [[Union for the Mediterranean]], the [[Latin Union]], the [[Council of Europe]], [[Uniting for Consensus]], the [[Schengen Area]], and [[Foreign relations of Italy#International institutions|many more]]. The source of [[List of Italian inventions and discoveries|many inventions and discoveries]], the country has long been a global centre of [[Italian art|art]], [[Music of Italy|music]], [[Italian literature|literature]], [[Italian philosophy|philosophy]], [[Science and technology in Italy|science and technology]], and [[Italian fashion|fashion]], and has greatly influenced and contributed to diverse fields including [[Cinema of Italy|cinema]], [[Italian cuisine|cuisine]], [[Sport in Italy|sports]], jurisprudence, banking, and business.<ref>((cite web |url=http://www.crvp.org/book/Series04/IV-5/chapter_vi.htm |title=The essence of Italian culture and the challenge of the global age |author=Michael Barone |date=2 September 2010 |publisher=Council for Research in Values and philosophy |access-date=22 September 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120922063927/http://www.crvp.org/book/Series04/IV-5/chapter_vi.htm |archive-date=22 September 2012))</ref> As a reflection of [[Culture of Italy|its cultural wealth]], Italy has the world's [[World Heritage Sites by country#Countries with major concentrations of World Heritage Sites|largest number]] of [[List of World Heritage Sites in Italy|World Heritage Sites]] (58), and is the [[World Tourism rankings|fifth-most]] visited country.

Moreover, Italy contributes greatly to scientific research((citation needed|date=April 2020)) and operates some permanent [[research stations in Antarctica]]. In terms of spaceflight capability, the country owns the [[Broglio Space Centre]]. The country is a major contributor to the [[European Space Agency]] and the [[International Space Station]].

== See also ==
* [[Cold War]] 1947–1989
* [[Concert of Europe]], after 1814
* [[Diplomatic history of World War I]]
* [[Diplomatic history of World War II]]
* [[European balance of power]]
* [[Foreign policy of the Russian Empire]]
* [[Great Eastern Crisis]], 1875–1878
* [[Historic recurrence]]
* [[Historiography of the British Empire]]
** [[History of the foreign relations of the United Kingdom]]
** ''[[Pax Britannica]]''
** [[Timeline of British diplomatic history]]
* [[History of colonialism]]
* [[History of French foreign relations]]
* [[History of German foreign policy]]
* [[History of globalization]]
* [[International relations (1648–1814)]]
* [[International relations (1919–1939)]]
* [[International relations (1814–1919)]]
* [[List of ancient great powers]]
* [[List of largest empires]]
* [[List of medieval great powers]]
* [[Precedence among European monarchies]]
* [[Middle power]]
* [[New Imperialism]]
* [[Potential superpower]]
* [[Power (international relations)]]
* [[Timeline of European imperialism]]
* [[Timeline of United States diplomatic history]]

== Notes ==
((reflist|group=n.))
((reflist|group=note))

== References ==
((Reflist))

==Bibliography==
* ((cite book |last=Anderson |first=Fred |date=2007 |title=Crucible of War: The Seven Years' War and the Fate of Empire in British North America, 1754–1766 |publisher=Vintage – [[Random House]] |isbn=978-0-307-42539-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FFO2clqJCqMC))
* ((cite web | last = DeLong | first = J. Bradford | author-link = J. Bradford DeLong | title = Slouching Towards Utopia?: The Economic History of the Twentieth Century. XV. Nazis and Soviets | date = February 1997 | publisher = University of California at Berkeley | work = econ161.berkeley.edu | url = http://econ161.berkeley.edu/TCEH/Slouch_Purge15.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080511190923/http://econ161.berkeley.edu/TCEH/Slouch_Purge15.html | access-date = 21 April 2013 | archive-date = 11 May 2008 | url-status = dead | df = dmy-all))
* ((cite book | last = Evans | first = Richard J. | year = 2005 | title = The Third Reich in Power | url = https://archive.org/details/thirdreichinpowe00evan | url-access = registration | publisher = Penguin | location = New York | isbn =978-0-14-303790-3 ))
* ((cite book |last=Ferguson |first=Niall |author-link=Niall Ferguson |title=Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power |publisher=Basic Books |year=2004b |isbn=978-0-465-02329-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/empire00nial))
* ((Cite book| title = The Germans and the East  | editor1-last = Ingrao | editor1-first = Charles | editor1-link = Charles Ingrao  | editor2-last = Szabo | editor2-first = Franz A.J.  | name-list-style = amp  | year = 2007  | publisher = Purdue University Press  | isbn = 978-155753-443-9 ))
* ((cite book | last = Kershaw | first = Ian | title = Hitler: A Biography | publisher = W. W. Norton & Company | location = New York | year = 2008 | isbn = 978-0-393-06757-6 ))
* ((cite book |last=Lloyd |first=Trevor Owen |title=The British Empire 1558–1995 |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-19-873134-4 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gIBgQgAACAAJ))
* ((cite book |last=Marston |first=Daniel |date=2002 |title=The French and Indian War |series=Essential Histories |publisher=Osprey |isbn=1-84176-456-6))
* ((cite book | last = McNab | first = Chris | title = The Third Reich | publisher = Amber Books | location = London | year = 2009 | isbn = 978-1-906626-51-8 ))
* ((cite journal | title = Le rôle de l'impératrice Eugénie en septembre et octobre 1870  | last = Reinach  | first = Joseph  | author-link = Joseph Reinach  | journal = Revue d'Histoire du XIXe siècle – 1848  | publisher = Société d'Histoire de la Révolution de 1848  | year = 1920 | volume = 17 | issue = 85  | page = 193  | language = fr  | url = https://www.persee.fr/doc/r1848_1155-8806_1920_num_17_85_1652 | doi = 10.3406/r1848.1920.1652 ))
* ((cite book |last=Richter |first=Daniel |title=Before the Revolution: America's ancient pasts |date=2011 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=9780674055803 |author-link=Daniel K. Richter))
* ((cite book | last = Shirer | first = William L. | author-link = William L. Shirer | title = The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich | publisher = Simon & Schuster | location = New York | year = 1960 | isbn = 978-0-671-62420-0 | title-link = The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich))
* ((Cite book| title = Power and Policy: Lessons for Leaders in Government and Business | last = Truitt | first = Wesley B. | year = 2010  | publisher = Praeger  | isbn = 978-031338-240-6 ))
* ((cite book | last = Tooze | first = Adam | author-link = Adam Tooze | title = The Wages of Destruction: The Making and Breaking of the Nazi Economy | year = 2006 | publisher = Viking | location = New York; Toronto | isbn = 978-0-670-03826-8 | title-link = The Wages of Destruction))

== Further reading ==
* Banks, Arthur. (1988) ''A World Atlas of Military History 1861–1945''
* ''Cambridge Modern History Atlas'' (1912) [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.78914 online]. 141 maps
* Catchpole, Brian. (1982) ''Map History of the Modern World''
* Cooper, F. (2008). ''Empires and Political Imagination in World History''. Princeton [u.a.]: Princeton University Press.
* Daniels, Patricia S. and Stephen G. Hyslop, ''Almanac of World History'' (3rd ed 2014); 384pp well illustrated
* Doyle, M. W. (1986). ''Empires''. Ithaca, N.Y: Cornell University Press.
* Farrington, K. (2003). ''Historical Atlas of Empires''. London: Mercury.
* Grenville, J.A.S. (1994) ''A History of the World in the Twentieth Century'' (1994). [https://archive.org/details/historyofworldin00gren online]
* Haywood, John. (1997) ''Atlas of world history'' [https://archive.org/search.php?query=atlas%20world%20history%20haywood online]
* Joffe, Josef. ''The myth of America's decline: Politics, economics, and a half century of false prophecies'' ( WW Norton & Company, 2014).
* Kinder, Hermann and Werner Hilgemann. ''The Penguin Atlas of World History'' (2 vol, 2004); advanced topical atlas. [https://www.amazon.com/Penguin-Atlas-World-History-Prehistory/dp/0141012633/ excerpt of vol 1] also see [https://www.amazon.com/Penguin-Atlas-World-History-Revolution/dp/0141012625/ excerpt vol 2]
* Langer, William, ed. (1973) ''An Encyclopedia of World History'' (1948 And later editions) [https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.234117/page/n5 online]
** Stearns, Peter, ed. ''The Encyclopedia of World History'' (2007), 1245pp; update of Langer
* ((cite book|author=Mckay, Derek, and H.M. Scott|title=The Rise of the Great Powers 1648 – 1815|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OaiQBAAAQBAJ&pg=PR7|year=1983|publisher=Pearson|isbn=9781317872849))
* Pella, John & Erik Ringmar, (2019) ''History of international relations'' [http://www.irhistory.info/%20History%20of%20International%20Relations Online ] ((Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190816033245/http://www.irhistory.info/%20History%20of%20International%20Relations |date=16 August 2019 ))
* O'Brian, Patrick K. ''Atlas of World History'' (2007) [https://archive.org/details/atlas-of-world-history/page/n2 online]
* Pastor, Robert, ed. ''A Century's Journey How The Great Powers Shape The World'' (2000)
* ''Rand McNally Atlas of World History'' (1983), maps #76–81. Published in Britain as the ''Hamlyn Historical Atlas'' [https://archive.org/details/randmcnallyatlas00 online]
* Roberts, J. M. and Odd Arne Westad, eds. ''The Penguin History of the World'' (6th ed. 2014) 1280pp [https://www.amazon.com/Penguin-History-World-Sixth/dp/1846144434/ excerpt]
* Robertson, Charles Grant. ''An historical atlas of modern Europe from 1789 to 1922 with an historical and explanatory text'' (1922) [https://archive.org/details/HistoricalAtlas online]

((International power))
((Empires))

((DEFAULTSORT:Modern greatpowers (list)))
[[Category:Countries]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Countries by status|*]]
[[Category:History of international relations]]
[[Category:Lists of countries]]
[[Category:Lists of former countries|Great powers]]
[[Category:Modern history]]
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