Superpowers & Global Action
- Superpowers and emerging nations play a key role in global actions including:
- Crisis response
- Conflict response
- Climate change
Crisis response
- During times of crisis such as floods or earthquakes countries provide help to other countries
- Superpowers and emerging nations pay a leading role in this
- The aid can be in the form of finance, building materials and other resources
- Aid is provided through International Governmental Organisations (IGOs) and Non-governmental Organisations (NGOs)
- At least 105 countries and 16 international organisations pledged help to Turkey and Syria following the 2023 earthquake, including significant resources from the USA and emerging superpowers
- USA sent a disaster response team of 200 people and pledged $185 million in aid
- China offered $10.3 million in aid to Syria and Turkey as well as sending three rescue teams totalling almost 600 people
- The EU sent 31 rescue teams and 5 medical teams as well as committing €6.5 million
- NATO deployed temporary housing to accommodate 4,000 people
- UN released $25 million from its emergency funds
- The World Bank agreed to provide $1.78 billion in aid for relief and recovery
- The countries have also taken a leading role during the Covid pandemic
Conflict response
- In 1942 President Roosevelt proposed the concept of 'four policemen'
- USA, UK, China and the former USSR would be the only ones to have arms
- They would work together to maintain global peace
- Although this did not come to fruition the USA and emerging superpowers do often act as 'global police'
- Interventions have occurred in many incidences of growing tensions and conflicts around the world
- NATO and UN intervention in the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina starting with the deployment of UN peacekeepers in 1992
- NATO military intervention in Libya in 2011
- The USA led military intervention by a coalition of 35 countries when Iraq invaded Kuwait in 1990
- In 2001 the USA with support from the UK, Australia, Canada, France and Germany led military intervention in Afghanistan to remove the Taliban from control
Climate change response
- Global warming and climate change require an international response because it affects the entire globe
- Superpowers and emerging nations have a significant role to play in the response
- In 1988 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was set up to assess the 'risks of human-induced climate change
- This was followed by several international agreements:
- Earth Summit 1992
- Kyoto Protocol 1997
- Paris Agreement 2015
- President Trump's decision to withdraw the USA from the Paris Agreement in 2020 was seen to be detrimental to their superpower status - the USA rejoined in 2021 after the election of President Biden