How true and false are the claims of the world’s superpower ‘America’s decline’?

washington (Uttam Hindu News): As world and Asian leaders gather this month for the G20, APEC meetings and the East Asia summit, America’s perceived decline is likely to influence some observers’ perceptions of global politics and economics. There is an event to happen.

This is from a commentary about “perceived American decline” that appeared in 2011 on the website of Brookings, a major American think tank, in an article entitled “Is America in Decline?” It ran under the title.

The same question has been asked every year since then, with the allegation that the then outgoing President is responsible. This is being asked again now as US President Joe Biden joins G20 leaders – except Russia’s Vladimir Putin and China’s Xi Jinping – in New Delhi for an annual meeting.

Under Biden’s watch, the US dollar remains the dominant international currency of trade and exchange. Despite the rhetoric of China and Russia, there is no serious threat. According to the International Monetary Fund, the US economy is the largest in the world with a GDP of $26.65 trillion. China is in second place with $19.27 trillion.

US-led NATO has grown, gained a new member, Finland, and has another member, Sweden, in waiting. A US-led Western coalition has thwarted Putin’s takeover of Ukraine.

Biden’s US has rapidly expanded Quad participation to summit-level and established AUKUS to counter growing Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific. And, finally, Biden pulled the US out of Afghanistan, ending its longest war after the previous two presidents, Barack Obama and Donald Trump, failed.

Biden has also focused his administration on countering China’s growing global influence as a competitor. Instead of launching a messy trade war like his predecessor Trump, he has used narrowly focused authorities to suppress China, depriving it of sensitive technology as part of an overall strategy of risk aversion and diversification.

They have increased pressure on China, whose economy is facing its worst recession ever, to accept greater market access and fair and equal treatment with American companies.

His Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo taught Chinese leadership the Riot Act during a recent visit and told them their country was becoming “uninvestable.”

Biden’s own personal image is largely viewed positively globally, as a Pew survey at the beginning of the year showed.

An average of 54 percent of respondents in 23 countries said they had confidence in the US President. In the same survey, 58 percent of respondents said they had a positive view of the US, although many of them also said the US interferes in other countries’ affairs.

A Pew poll in 2020, when Trump was president, reported an all-time low in the world’s perception of America. Only 34 percent of respondents had a favorable view of America and the then-current president was down to 16 percent favorability.

Biden himself and America under Biden are faring much better, with double-digit gains in percentage points. However, President Biden enjoys low popularity ratings domestically in the US.

A poll released just before Biden’s departure for New Delhi put his popularity at 39 percent and most Republicans competing for the party’s nomination for president in 2024 were in a close race with him, with one exception, the United Nations. Former Ambassador to the U.S. was Nikki Haley, who had a clear lead over Biden.

The story of American decline is somewhat similar to how Americans themselves view America’s global position.

Opinions about America’s global standing declined slightly in 2023 as 21 percent said the US “stands above all other countries in the world,” compared to 24 percent in 2019. 52 percent said the U.S. is “one of the greatest countries along with few others,” compared to 55 in 2019, and 27 percent said “there are other countries that are better than the U.S.” compared to 27 percent in 2019. This figure was 21 percent. And, it was related to America’s domestic politics.

“The majority of the recent change in attitudes has come from Republicans and Republican-leaning independents,” Pew said in an August report. Four years ago, 40 percent of Republicans said America was superior to all other countries, compared to 31 percent today. The share of Republicans who say other countries are better has nearly doubled, from 9 percent to 17 percent.”

The allegations of American decline remain the same as they were in 2011.