The American Spectator

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Special Report

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In contrast, Beijing's star is ascending. China possesses the world's largest population, a rapidly growing economy, increased influence throughout the Asia-Pacific, new investments in Africa and Latin America, and more.

The U.S.-China relationship also is more important than America's ties to Russia. The former is characterized by numerous areas of potential cooperation as well as significant potential pitfalls. If North Korea is restrained, it will be as a result of joint U.S. and Chinese efforts. If East Asia, the globe's most economically dynamic region, enjoys political stability, it will be because Washington and Beijing have reached a modus vivendi.

There once were two international poles: the U.S. and Russia. Despite manifold challenges, America remains the globe's dominant power.

The old Soviet Union, however, is long gone and Russia, despite its recent oil-driven revival, represents the past. If Moscow proves unwilling to accept the challenges and opportunities that arise naturally from capitalist and democratic reforms, it risks becoming an international backwater.

China is not yet a superpower, but it has embraced sufficient liberal changes to become the likeliest new pole in the international order. What that means for the people of Asia and elsewhere remains to be seen. But the changing global balance helps explain the dynamics of the two visa offices, so close in geography but so different in operation.

topics:
Education, Vladimir Putin, Business, Military, Russia, Africa, North Korea, Communism, Nuclear Weapons, Energy, Oil