Globalisa(on
Context
The ‘Old World Order’
• A bipolar world dominated by the two superpowers
• The Cold War characterised by the threat of nuclear war, but no direct conflict
• A balance of power between the USA and the USSR
• An East-West divide based on compeEng ideologies of communism and capitalism
The Collapse of The ‘Old World Order’
• The collapse of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe
• The disintegraEon of the Soviet Union as a result of polices introduced by Gorbachev
• The formaEon of Commonwealth of Independent States
• Russian FederaEon was unable to solve its issues, parEcularly economically
The Emergence of the New World Order
• The end of the Cold War = The ‘New World Order’
• An end to global tension given the threat of nuclear war far less probable
• However, the end of the balance of power actually led to a more unpredictable world poliEcally
• Many regional and civil conflicts
• Fears of nuclear war were not fully abated with several countries securing nuclear capacity
• There are fears that such naEons will not exercise restraint
- Ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan
- Fears that North Korea will uElise its nuclear capacity
Unipolar World
• The USA holds central power
• US dominaEon becomes more apparent — militarily, economically, technologically and poliEcally
• US-styled capitalism became dominant
• Emergence of a global economy
• However, the world did not become more united
• Division between the East and West was replaced by the division between the developed North and the
poor South
• The ‘War On Terror’ had united many people and naEons against USA’s dominance
The Dominant US
• Some argue that the USA was already in a state of dominance, therefore no ‘New World Order’ was
heralded in
, • Also may be argued that China had emerged as an economic giant following an economic boom in the
1980s
• China posed an economic challenge to US dominance i.e USA may not be the singular dominant naEon
Balance of World Power
• US viewed the end of the Cold War as a victory - made them believe that their way of life was ‘right’
• US military spending conEnued, as did the USA’s involvement in countries across the world
• While the Warsaw Pact had dissolved in July 1991, the North AtlanEc Treaty OrganisaEon was sEll fully
operaEonal with former Warsaw Pact naEons joining following the collapse of their communist regimes
• The Non-Aligned Movement seemed unable to change the nature of internaEonal relaEons a\er the
Cold War had ended
A More Unified World?
• The world is not more united
• A huge divide between the wealthier, industrialised North and the poorer, less developed South
• There is a deep divide between the US and those naEons targeted by the ‘War On Terror’ following the
9/11 a`acks
• US acEon (described by adversaries as ‘state terrorism’) against Islamist fundamentalists led to more
terrorism, rather than less
Wealthy North v Poor South
• China and India were formerly seen as part of the underdeveloped South
• However, they had the fastest growing economies of that Eme
• One explanaEon for their rapid growth: India and China did not follow the proscripEons of the
Washington Consensus
• China and India were seen as emerging economies and no longer developing countries
• NaEons in the South established South-South connecEons through trade links, like the establishment of
BRICS
The Status of Communism
• Cuba, North Korea, Vietnam and China viewed by many as communist
• North Korea remained largely isolated
• Cuba was hugely affected by the withdrawal of the Soviet support, especially due to the ongoing US
sancEons against them
• Vietnam moved closer to the USA
• China no longer had a centrally-controlled economy
The ‘New World Order’ in the South
• Developing naEons struggled to compete, leading to growing inequality
• Manifested as a huge economic divide between the developed North and the developing South
Context
The ‘Old World Order’
• A bipolar world dominated by the two superpowers
• The Cold War characterised by the threat of nuclear war, but no direct conflict
• A balance of power between the USA and the USSR
• An East-West divide based on compeEng ideologies of communism and capitalism
The Collapse of The ‘Old World Order’
• The collapse of the communist regimes in Eastern Europe
• The disintegraEon of the Soviet Union as a result of polices introduced by Gorbachev
• The formaEon of Commonwealth of Independent States
• Russian FederaEon was unable to solve its issues, parEcularly economically
The Emergence of the New World Order
• The end of the Cold War = The ‘New World Order’
• An end to global tension given the threat of nuclear war far less probable
• However, the end of the balance of power actually led to a more unpredictable world poliEcally
• Many regional and civil conflicts
• Fears of nuclear war were not fully abated with several countries securing nuclear capacity
• There are fears that such naEons will not exercise restraint
- Ongoing conflict between India and Pakistan
- Fears that North Korea will uElise its nuclear capacity
Unipolar World
• The USA holds central power
• US dominaEon becomes more apparent — militarily, economically, technologically and poliEcally
• US-styled capitalism became dominant
• Emergence of a global economy
• However, the world did not become more united
• Division between the East and West was replaced by the division between the developed North and the
poor South
• The ‘War On Terror’ had united many people and naEons against USA’s dominance
The Dominant US
• Some argue that the USA was already in a state of dominance, therefore no ‘New World Order’ was
heralded in
, • Also may be argued that China had emerged as an economic giant following an economic boom in the
1980s
• China posed an economic challenge to US dominance i.e USA may not be the singular dominant naEon
Balance of World Power
• US viewed the end of the Cold War as a victory - made them believe that their way of life was ‘right’
• US military spending conEnued, as did the USA’s involvement in countries across the world
• While the Warsaw Pact had dissolved in July 1991, the North AtlanEc Treaty OrganisaEon was sEll fully
operaEonal with former Warsaw Pact naEons joining following the collapse of their communist regimes
• The Non-Aligned Movement seemed unable to change the nature of internaEonal relaEons a\er the
Cold War had ended
A More Unified World?
• The world is not more united
• A huge divide between the wealthier, industrialised North and the poorer, less developed South
• There is a deep divide between the US and those naEons targeted by the ‘War On Terror’ following the
9/11 a`acks
• US acEon (described by adversaries as ‘state terrorism’) against Islamist fundamentalists led to more
terrorism, rather than less
Wealthy North v Poor South
• China and India were formerly seen as part of the underdeveloped South
• However, they had the fastest growing economies of that Eme
• One explanaEon for their rapid growth: India and China did not follow the proscripEons of the
Washington Consensus
• China and India were seen as emerging economies and no longer developing countries
• NaEons in the South established South-South connecEons through trade links, like the establishment of
BRICS
The Status of Communism
• Cuba, North Korea, Vietnam and China viewed by many as communist
• North Korea remained largely isolated
• Cuba was hugely affected by the withdrawal of the Soviet support, especially due to the ongoing US
sancEons against them
• Vietnam moved closer to the USA
• China no longer had a centrally-controlled economy
The ‘New World Order’ in the South
• Developing naEons struggled to compete, leading to growing inequality
• Manifested as a huge economic divide between the developed North and the developing South
