National power
National power is defined as the sum of all resources available to a nation in the pursuit of national objectives.[1] Assessing the national power of political entities was already a matter of relevance during the classical antiquity, the middle ages and the renaissance and today.[2][failed verification]
Elements of national power
National power stems from various elements, also called instruments or attributes; these may be put into two groups based on their applicability and origin - "natural" and "social".[3]
- Natural:
- Geography
- Resources
- Population
- Social:
Geography
Important facets of geography such as location (geography), climate, topography, and size play major roles in the ability of a nation to gain national power. Location has an important bearing on foreign policy of a nation. The relation between foreign policy and geographic location gave rise to the discipline of geopolitics.
The presence of a water obstacle provided protection to nation states such as Great Britain, Japan, and the United States and allowed Japan to follow isolationist policies. The presence of large accessible seaboards also permitted these nations to build strong navies and expand their territories peacefully or by conquest. In contrast, Poland, with no obstacle for its powerful neighbours, even lost its independence as a nation, being partitioned among the Kingdom of Prussia, the Russian Empire, and Austria from 1795 onwards till it regained independence in 1918.
Climate affects the productivity of Russian agriculture as the majority of the nation is in latitudes well north of ideal latitudes for farming. Conversely, Russia's size permitted it to trade space for time during the Great Patriotic War.[3]
Measurements
Depending on the interaction of the individual elements of national power, attempts can be made to classify states and assign them a status in the international order of states. Globally important states with dominant positions in all or almost all elements of national power are called superpowers. This term was applied to the Soviet Union and the United States during the Cold War. In the 21st century, it is also increasingly applied to the People's Republic of China. Other status classification terms for states include, in descending hierarchy, world powers, great powers, regional powers, middle powers, and small powers. For states or alliances with almost absolute power, the term hyperpower is used.
Despite the difficulty of the task and the multidimensional nature of power, several attempts have been made to express the power of states in objective rankings and indexes based on statistical indicators.
Composite Index of National Capability
The Composite Index of National Capability (CINC) was conceived by J. David Singer in 1963. It includes the six factors of total population, urban population, iron and steel production, primary energy consumption, military expenditure and number of soldiers and calculates an index from them. His methodology is considered outdated, however, as he only takes into account "hard" power factors and indicators such as steel production no longer have the same significance as in the early 20th century.
| Rank | Country |
|---|---|
| 1 |  China
|
| 2 |  United States
|
| 3 |  India
|
| 4 |  Japan
|
| 5 |  Russia
|
| 6 |  South Korea
|
| 7 |  Germany
|
| 8 |  Brazil
|
| 9 |  United Kingdom
|
| 10 |  France
|
National Power Ranking of Countries
The National Power Ranking of Countries was published in a paper by the University of Warsaw and the University of Wroclaw. It divides countries into the categories of economic, military and geopolitical power, which is derived from statistical indicators. The report also analyzes the evolution of the distribution of power in the world since 1992 and makes a forecast for 2050, noting an increasing shift of power from the Western world to the Asia-Pacific region.
| Economic power | Military power | Geopolitical power | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Country | Rank | Country | Rank | Country |
| 1 | China
|
1 | United States
|
1 | United States
|
| 2 | United States
|
2 | China
|
2 | China
|
| 3 | India
|
3 | India
|
3 | India
|
| 4 | Japan
|
4 | Russia
|
4 | Russia
|
| 5 | Brazil
|
5 |  Saudi Arabia
|
5 | Saudi Arabia
|
| 6 | Germany
|
6 | France
|
6 | Japan
|
| 7 | Russia
|
7 | Brazil
|
7 | Brazil
|
| 8 | France
|
8 | Japan
|
8 | France
|
| 9 | United Kingdom
|
9 | United Kingdom
|
9 | Germany
|
| 10 |  Canada
|
10 | South Korea
|
10 | United Kingdom
|
State Power Index
The State Power Index was developed by Piotr Arak and Grzegorz Lewicki and takes into account the factors of economy, military, land area, population, cultural influence, natural resources and diplomacy, which is combined into an overall index.
| Rank | Country |
|---|---|
| 1 | United States
|
| 2 | China
|
| 3 | Russia
|
| 4 | India
|
| 5 | Germany
|
| 6 | United Kingdom
|
| 7 | France
|
| 8 | Japan
|
| 9 | Brazil
|
| 10 | Canada
|
World Power Index
The World Power Index (WPI) is a numerical expression that refers the accumulation of national capacities that a State possesses for the exercise of its power in the international system.
The WPI is the result of adding 18 indicators, which are organized through three composite indices:
- Material Capacities Index (MCI),
- Semimaterial Capacities Index (SCI),
- Immaterial Capabilities Index (ICI).
The WPI is presented as an analysis technique that, being quantitative, seeks to help overcome the hermeneutics that underlies the subjective interpretation of national power.[8] In this way, the WPI contributes to the accurate comparison of the national capacities of States and the study of their position in the international structure.[9]
See also
- Geopolitics
- Power projection
- Power in international relations
- Composite Index of National Capability
- Comprehensive National Power
- Most powerful countries
References
- ^ "Instruments of national power." in US NATO Military Terminology Group (2010). JP 1 (02) "Dictionary of Military and Associated Terms", 2001 (As amended through 31 July 2010) (PDF). Pentagon, Washington: Joint Chiefs of Staff, US Department of Defense. p. 229. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 10, 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
- ^ Fels, Enrico (2017). Shifting Power in Asia-Pacific? The Rise of China, Sino-US Competition and Regional Middle Power Allegiance. Springer. pp. 225–340. ISBN 978-3-319-45689-8. Retrieved 2016-11-25.
- ^ a b Jablonsky, David (2010). "Ch. 9 - "National power"". In Bartholomees (Jr), J. Boone (ed.). The U.S. Army War College Guide to National Security Issues (Vol 1) : Theory of War and Strategy (4/ed). Carlisle, Pennsylvania: U.S. Army War College. p. 126. ISBN 978-1-58487-450-8. Retrieved 12 September 2010.
- ^ Singer, J. David, Stuart Bremer, and John Stuckey. (1972). "Capability Distribution, Uncertainty, and Major Power War, 1820-1965." in Bruce Russett (ed) Peace, War, and Numbers, Beverly Hills: Sage, 19-48.
- ^ "Composite Index of National Capability". 2011-07-20. Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2022-04-16.
- ^ Kiczma, Łukasz and Sułek, Mirosław (2020). "National Power Ranking of Countries" (PDF). University of Warsaw, University of Wroclaw. Retrieved 2022-04-16.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "State Power Index". Retrieved 2022-04-16.
- ^ Rocha Valencia, Alberto; Morales Ruvalcaba, Daniel (2018-06-20). "El poder nacional-internacional de los Estados. Una propuesta trans-estructural". Geopolítica(s). Revista de estudios sobre espacio y poder. 9 (1): 137–169. doi:10.5209/GEOP.57778. ISSN 2172-7155.
- ^ Morales Ruvalcaba, Daniel; Rocha Valencia, Alberto (2022-06-16). "Geoestructura de poder en el sistema político internacional: un enfoque trans-estructural". Geopolítica(s). Revista de estudios sobre espacio y poder. 13 (1): 41–81. doi:10.5209/geop.72589. ISSN 2172-7155.
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