ABSTRACT
Many policy-makers and scholars viewed the end of the Cold War as the beginning of the American century: the collapse of the Soviet empire paved the way for a unipolar world. The United States, as the lone superpower, was considered indispensable for a more peaceful, stable, thriving world order. Two decades on views have changed. Nobody can now deny that China, India, Brazil, Russia, Indonesia, South Africa and the European Union are striving for a new, autonomous role in international politics. Some scholars speak openly of The End of the American Era (Kupchan, 2002 ). The United States is less of a superpower and more of a major power, on the same footing as other partners. Even a convinced unipolarist admits: ‘The United States must adjust and accommodate itself to this order and not simply run it as an imperial state.’ Moreover it must ‘accept some restrictions on how it can use its power’ (Ikenberry, 2004 : 87, 105).
