Geografie 2011, 116, 256-275
Military Power and Its Global Distribution after the End of the Cold War
The article deals with the phenomenon of military power as an important dimension of states’ power capabilities. It explores the long-standing influence of anarchy, which forces states to think in terms of power. The article also examines shifts in military power distribution, after the end of the Cold War, and the general tendency towards the reduction of U.S. unipolarity. The article also aims to test the emergence of civilization-based regions by introducing a measurement of military power and militarization. This hypothesis is rejected, as only the West exhibits characteristics of an integrated security community. Because the competition for power among states will remain an important feature of the international system, military power should not escape from geopolitical consideration.
Keywords
military, power, distribution, realism, geopolitics, civilization.
