NCERT Book Class 12 Political Science (Contemporary World Politics) Chapter 2 Contemporary Centres of Power

Cha p ter 2
Contem p ora ry
Centres of Pow er
Overview
After the end of the bipolar
structure of world politics in
the early 1990s, it became
clear that alternative centres of
political and economic power
could limit America’s dominance.
Thus, in Europe, the European
Union (EU) and, in Asia, the
Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN), have emerged
as forces to reckon with. While
evolving regional solutions to
their historical enmities and
weaknesses, both the EU and the
ASEAN have developed alternative
institutions and conventions
that build a more peaceful and
cooperative regional order and
have transformed the countries
in the region into prosperous
economies. The economic rise
of China has made a dramatic The tw o im a g es here rep resent tw o p ha ses of the history of
impact on world politics. In this China . The red p oster – “ The Soc ia list Roa d is the Broa d est
of All” – rep resents the id eolog y tha t g uid ed China d uring its
chapter, we take a look at some
ea rly p ha se a fter the Revolution. The p hotog ra p h b elow is tha t
of these emerging alternative of the c ity of Sha ng ha i, the sym b ol of China ’ s new ec onom ic
centres of power and assess their p ow er.
possible role in the future.