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British Empire Vs China Essay

Decent Essays
In his work Noctes Ambrosianae, Professor Wilson states, “His Majesty’s dominions, on which the sun never sets” (Wilson). The extent of influence exerted by the British spanned the globe, only a few empires over the course of history could exert their power in a similar manner as the British did in the Mid-19th Century. Unrivaled since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1990, the United States has maintained a firm grip upon its’ status as the world’s only superpower and is the closest comparison to the British Empire prior to World War I. Similar to the British Empire, actions taken by competing nations in an attempt to balance power could lead to the eventual degradation of the United States ability to project power globally. Theorists believe that evidence of balancing behavior, such as military advancement and changes in GDP could indicate an…show more content…
China in recent years has utilized an increased national wealth to fund significant military advances that have been primarily focused on the restructuring and modernization of its’ military capabilities. Updating naval capabilities has been a top priority of the Chinese government, because naval power is possibly the single most important aspect of measuring a nation’s ability to project power. Naval Analyst Ronald O’Rourke explains that, “China’s naval modernization effort to date appears focused less on increasing total platform (i.e., ship and aircraft) numbers than on increasing the modernity and capability of Chinese platforms” (O’Rouke). This shift in philosophy by China can be perceived as an attempt to counterbalance the United States naval supremacy by taking a quality over quantity approach. Specific examples include replacing a large number of obsolete vessels with modern platforms, the acquisition and retrofitting of a Ukrainian carrier, and the ongoing development of another aircraft
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