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Can Britain ever become a superpower again?
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As I was writing a post in another topic earlier about Russia and their right to be a superpower, my mind rambled a bit and I started to wonder if Great Britain can ever become a political superpower on the international stage again.
90 years ago, the British Empire was accountable for approximately 25% of the entire worlds population, and Britain had control of 25% of the worlds landmass, therefore being able to completely dictate trade routes and international relations. A lot has changed in 90 years, clearly.
In 2008, Great Britian controls very little in the way of overseas territories, and have a population of only 58,000,000 residents, many having moved into the UK from other countries. We also seem to be losing the ability to defend ourselves politically, being subservient to the United States in their quest to capture resources, and being a part of the European Union, often have to accept group decisions that the country does not agree with or benefit from in any way.
So, with all this in mind, can Britain ever become a superpower again if desired? I know that we clearly will never compete with China in terms of population, but is there any way to maximise the economic power of the nation in order to compete in terms of financial position and ability to develop and expand faster and more sustainably than other nations?
Also, what would be the positives and negatives for the general population if it ever were to happen?
90 years ago, the British Empire was accountable for approximately 25% of the entire worlds population, and Britain had control of 25% of the worlds landmass, therefore being able to completely dictate trade routes and international relations. A lot has changed in 90 years, clearly.
In 2008, Great Britian controls very little in the way of overseas territories, and have a population of only 58,000,000 residents, many having moved into the UK from other countries. We also seem to be losing the ability to defend ourselves politically, being subservient to the United States in their quest to capture resources, and being a part of the European Union, often have to accept group decisions that the country does not agree with or benefit from in any way.
So, with all this in mind, can Britain ever become a superpower again if desired? I know that we clearly will never compete with China in terms of population, but is there any way to maximise the economic power of the nation in order to compete in terms of financial position and ability to develop and expand faster and more sustainably than other nations?
Also, what would be the positives and negatives for the general population if it ever were to happen?
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#3
Probably not. Unlike Russia, China, the United States etc we relied on the traditional European imperial design with plenty of overseas territories. That simply does not go on any more.
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#4
Given that our population is probably too small short of there being some incredible technological/industrial revolution which puts us far ahead of then rest then no we wont be a superpower again. And can people please stop calling Russia a superpower because it ****ing well is not.
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#8
We don't need to, but a small nation like ours ruled over many. If desired, Im sure we'd do it again, but like I say it's not required.
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#9
We will not be a superpower again for at least quite some time. I will not say its impossible, as the colonisation of the moon and Mars could change a lot of things both militarily and politically. Even so., it is very unlikely. However, I would that that the UK will remain a major power for a long time yet. We may not have many natural resources, but we do havbe a lot in our favour. For example, of the five biggest law firms in the world, 3 are British.
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#11
You could make a case for the UK being a financial superpower, we punch way above our weight politically and we have one of the best trained militaries in the world. Yet superpower in the old sense of the word, basically being a colonial or military superpower, is something I think is out of our reach for very obvious and in my opinion desirable reasons.
The best way the UK can stay on the world stage is doing what it does now, being pretty much the top in the service industries.
The best way the UK can stay on the world stage is doing what it does now, being pretty much the top in the service industries.
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#12
The British Empire was probably the greatest the world has ever known. It was also one of the most brutal and morally abhorrent.
I think monopolistic power tends to corrupt and is almost invariably abused.
Anyway, we are a stable, wealthy country. Why do you care, Ian? I hope this isn't some jingoist nonsense.
The fact is, it isn't going to happen.
I think monopolistic power tends to corrupt and is almost invariably abused.
Anyway, we are a stable, wealthy country. Why do you care, Ian? I hope this isn't some jingoist nonsense.
The fact is, it isn't going to happen.
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#13
Only through the EU. Even then its unlikely and would not be the sole powerplayer what with France and germany .
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#14
I agree with Jammy21's first line here. If we did every become a superpower again, I hope it'd be based on the ideals we hold now, rather than the oppression of native people and destruction of anyone we don't like.
I quite like our current position. Of course, a stronger military would be nice, but who's gonna pay for that? 'shrugs'
I quite like our current position. Of course, a stronger military would be nice, but who's gonna pay for that? 'shrugs'
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#16
Not independently. Europe could become a superpower and thus we could be part of that, but not independently. We're far superior then we should be, looking at our size, but we'll never be a superpower again.
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#18
(Original post by billyboymccoy)
Only through the EU. Even then its unlikely and would not be the sole powerplayer what with France and germany .
Only through the EU. Even then its unlikely and would not be the sole powerplayer what with France and germany .
If we didn't bend over to the EU so much, then we would have a better chance.
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#19
Yes it can. Whether it does become one remains to be seen. The next superpowers will be those who win the energy war. That is those who develop the best and most efficient renewable/readily accessible power source and are completely self sufficient on it. Possibly creating a surplus.
In all honesty, I really see the EU being the next World Super Power in the next 70 years. I mean we are getting closer and closer to becoming a single 'state'. I mean most of Europe has the same currency, laws and you don't need a visa to travel between each country.
In all honesty, I really see the EU being the next World Super Power in the next 70 years. I mean we are getting closer and closer to becoming a single 'state'. I mean most of Europe has the same currency, laws and you don't need a visa to travel between each country.
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#20
(Original post by IanDangerously)
As I was writing a post in another topic earlier about Russia and their right to be a superpower, my mind rambled a bit and I started to wonder if Great Britain can ever become a political superpower on the international stage again.
As I was writing a post in another topic earlier about Russia and their right to be a superpower, my mind rambled a bit and I started to wonder if Great Britain can ever become a political superpower on the international stage again.
When half of the population are more interested at looking at drawing lines in the sand between their regions, you simply can't have much power on the international scene.
If the UK doesn't sort out its identity problem, it won't even be a medium-sized power.
What you will notice in superpowers is a strong identity with a population that is first proud of belonging to that country (i.e. in our case that would be the UK and not the constituent countries/regions) and that can project that strong image to the world.
There are a number of countries who are quite eager to have alliances with the UK but the UK deals with too many internal issues to take advantage of them. This is best illustrated in the case of the European Union where many countries are pro-UK yet the UK is quite timid to project itself.
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