Strategic Vision: America and the Crisis of Global Power

The world today faces a crisis of power, caused by the dramatic shift in its center of gravity from the West to the East, by the dynamic political awakening of people worldwide, and by the deterioration of America’s performance both domestically and internationally. This crisis poses serious long-term challenges not just to American interests, but also to the survival of some endangered states, to common efforts against global threats such as nuclear proliferation and climate change, and to geopolitical stability more broadly. Former National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski argue that America can and should be actively engaged in navigating this period of crisis. But in order to do so, it must solve its domestic problems and pursue a strategy that responds to its differing regional interests. America should promote a greater and broader unity in Europe, eventually including Russia and Turkey in a more vital and enlarged West. In the new East, it must balance and conciliate the region’s rising powers, avoid direct military involvement in Asian mainland conflicts while sustaining its existing alliance with Japan and consolidate a globally cooperative relationship with China.