National Power, Determinants of

Factors that dictate a state's strengths and weaknesses in its relations with other nations.

A state's national power determines whether it can obtain what it wants and whether it can influence others to do what it wants them to do.

States draw national power from several sources, including the size of their populations, their natural resources, and their geographic position. A state's national power also depends upon how effectively it exploits, organizes, and uses these different resources. In their relations with other states—including hard power, soft power, and economic power—states possess and use various types of national power.

Hard Power

The threat of force or the actual use of force to compel another state to do something or refrain from doing something is called hard power. For example, in September 2001, the United States threatened to invade and forcibly remove the Taliban regime in Afghanistan if it did not hand over international terrorist Osama bin Laden. When the Taliban refused, the U.S.-led coalition invaded Afghanistan the following month and quickly ousted the Taliban regime. Both the U.S. threat of force and its actual use of force constituted hard power.

To increase hard power, a state can build up its military capabilities. If a state is strong militarily, it can coerce other states effectively and resist coercion itself. Currently, the United States is the strongest military power in the world and thus exhibits immense hard power. Its military spending in 2002 and 2003 was greater than the military spending of the next nine spenders combined. The U.S. possesses the world's most advanced military technologies, including its sophisticated nuclear arsenal and vast space technologies. These assets set the United States apart from any other state in the world.

[Page 497]Other factors also contribute to a state's hard power. Surrounded by two oceans, the United States' geographic position protects it from land-based threats. Meanwhile, the fact that it lies on two oceans allows it to project its sea power worldwide. The United States can also draw from its huge population and extraordinarily abundant natural resources. The legitimacy of the U.S. government and the public support that the government receives also contribute to the United States' military effectiveness and thus its hard power.

States have accumulated and used hard power in different ways throughout history. During the 19th century, Britain used its naval prowess to create an empire. It used the natural resources drawn from its empire to further strengthen its navy. In contrast with the United States, the small island nation came to dominate the globe despite its lack of natural resources and a small population at home.

Soft Power

In contrast with hard power, a state can use soft power to influence a targeted state by persuading it, rather than coercing it, to alter its behavior. If the targeted state can be convinced that the change is beneficial to its condition, it does not have to be coerced. Positive national image, persuasive leadership, strong cultural affinities, economic trade, and international prestige all contribute to a state's soft power. A state can use its soft power to co-opt other states and build relations of complex interdependence, in which states become linked through mutually beneficial economic and social exchange.

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