Part 2: Global Balance of Power

The West has dominated the rest of the world for nearly 500 years.  This section looks at the changes over this period.   In the first article, The Rise Of The West Was Based On Luck. That Has Run Out, we look at the rise of the West and argue that the West’s rise was based on a lot of luck and was by no means inevitable.   We compare the rise of Spain, Britain and the United States and what they all had in common.  In Crisis: Or An Explanation On The Origins Of The Decline Of The West we explore the decline of the West over the past few decades and ask why this happened and argue that this decline was also not inevitable, but as a result of bad choices by Europeans. We also look at the conflict in Ukraine and the possibility of escalation, resulting in either a full blown conventional war or, worse, nuclear war in The War in Ukraine: Escalation, Miscalculation and the Path to Peace. We then go into more detail about what a peace plan for Ukraine could look like in Forging Peace: From Centuries of War to Ukraine’s Future.

The following article, The North African Threat And Mediterranean Reunification, looks at the historical overlaps of North Africa and Europe and argues that the best solution to the problems of Islamic unrest in the area is closer European integration with North Africa. In Caliphate of the Headless: Why Islamic State Deserves Our Respect we look at why Islamic State actively provoked the West by attacking Westerners in their home countries and by beheading them in Iraq and Syria.   

We then move onto China, in China Has Many Of The Characteristics Of An Emerging Colonial Power. How Does It Compare Historically? and look at the history of colonisation starting from ancient Greek city states to China’s emerging influence in Africa.  China appears again in a comparison with Rome and Persia’s treatment of their Arab allies, who eventually toppled them both in Rome Vs. Persia And The Transfer Of Strategic Technologies To China.  This is followed by two more chapters on China, What Happens When China Becomes The Largest Economy In The World? and Why China Could Invade Taiwan – And Get Away With It, which describes the fascinating non Chinese history of Taiwan and its relationship with the mainland.  In The West’s romance with Free Trade is ending. Why? we look at how the rise of China has raised questions about the West’s adherence to a free trade model.

In the final article, Why Do We Need The Military? Securing Energy Supplies And Trade Routes, we look at the role of the military and the main reasons it exists today, not to defend national borders, but rather to secure energy supplies and trade routes.  We ask why we do this given the alternative choices that exist.