What must a nation achieve to be officially considered a super power?

skysmom65

A superpower is a state with the first rank in the international system and has the ability to influence events and project power on a worldwide scale; it is considered a higher level of power than a great power. The criteria of a Superpower are not clearly defined, but most definitions rely on measurements of four types of influence: Economic Power Comparative GDP size? Role in world trade? Military Power Force projection capability? Troop size? Naval size? Political Power Influential foreign policy? UN leadership? Cultural Power Role of history? Worldwide art, music, film? As a consequence of subjective measurements, the identity of Superpowers might be disputable, but a superpower should be a hegemony in most aspects of geopolitics. This means a superpower should be a hegemon in terms of both hard power and soft power. A superpower should have the ability to project power around the world. In the modern world, this requires not only a strong land army, but also the air and sealift capabilities to deploy and supply that military in furtherance of national interests, as well as public support for doing so. The military is generally backed by a strong economy, one that has the capability of controlling the global market. In recent times, indications of a strong economy has been shown through space research, a key part of competition between the two Cold War superpowers. MORE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superpower#Characteristics_of_a_superpower Mar 20 07, 8:46 AM