Ten Years That Shrank the United States

After the American century, the United States entered the 21st century at the pinnacle of its power. With the collapse of communism, the country established its military, economic and cultural dominance on a global scale.

When George Bush came to the White House in January 2001, the military budget of the U.S. was about $300 billion, more than 10 times all the other military budgets of the world combined. The scenario of the Cold War, of two superpowers vying for the world, had given way to the hegemony of a global superpower, and we anticipated a new American century.

But nine months into the new century and during the first term of George W. Bush, four planes hijacked by jihadists burst onto the global scene via television. The 10th anniversary of the attacks of 9/11 stimulates a search for a historical perspective on that tragic day and its consequences. A wealth of essays, books and article have been written about this. It merits all the attention it has received.

There is a certain consensus in this revised view: The attacks themselves are not relevant in defining the course of history. It was the reaction of the United States to it that is. For me, this is the same thing. No one asks which is more important to history, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor or the entrance of the U.S. into WWII; they were just steps of the same process.

The truth is that if the fanatical, nihilist and marginal group of Osama bin Laden had not executed the spectacular carnage of 9/11, the U.S. would not have spent trillions on two unwinnable wars and would not have adopted an armed unilateralism that has diminished its stature in the world.

The wars mired the U.S. in debt, which has made its economic recuperation now enormously difficult. Diplomatic and military errors undermined the global leadership of the country. Bin Laden may be dead and his terrorist network dealt a fatal blow, but the United States is smaller today than it was 10 years ago.

There are those who say this American decline was inevitable as a result of the Cold War, as the end of the U.S.-Soviet dispute inevitably weakened the alliances forged previously and enabled the formation of new regional alliances. What is sure is that we live in a time of a great change of power.

As the crises of debt and confidence in the U.S.A., Europe and Japan paralyzed the Northern Hemisphere, emerging nations such as China, Brazil and India, through processes of development, both inclusive and ingenious, have catapulted to center stage.

At the same time, disruptive, stateless actors such as al-Qaida gain force on a planet where technology, communication and capital ignores borders. The attacks on 9/11 and subsequent acts accelerated these transformations and showed the limits of American power. But for those who love to hate the U.S., those repressed Americaphiles who just leave the closet to line up for a visa at the American consulate, I recommend caution before celebrating.

The land of Barack Obama and Mark Zuckerberg is still much bigger and stronger than almost all its rivals combined. It has the best universities, the biggest businesses and has one of the best business climates in the world. It seems we won’t have a second American century, but the U.S. probably will still be the major player in the new game of nations.

Looking at some of the of foreign policy options of China and Brazil, I feel relieved!