Last week’s BRIC countries summit in Brasilia witnessed the beginning of what will surely become a trend over the next few decades: BRIC coordination against the United States on important issues in international society.

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s recent announcement that the US is postponing its official report on China’s currency is being hailed in the mainstream media as a diplomatic reprieve to entice Beijing to revalue its yuan (renminbi) and normalize bilateral trade.

In the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, we find a nuclear-armed state with a collapsing economy and a blurred line of leadership succession. In short, a geopolitical time bomb.

American decline has once again become a fashionable prophecy in academic and media circles. This time, BRIC countries like China and India have replaced the specter of a rising Japan, the country that was often cited by ‘declinists’ as a challenger to American hegemony during the 1980s. This backgrounder will examine both sides of the debate and provide an objective analysis of the causes and possible effects of American decline.

The status of Taiwan stands out among global disputes as one that could realistically trigger a war between major powers.  This backgrounder will first provide a brief historical overview of the conflict and then explore the changing military situation.  

The three concurrent trends of massive U.S. government debt, deficit spending, and a willingness to print money have caused Chinese economic planners to eye the PRC’s massive U.S. dollar-dominated federal currency reserves with increasing anxiety.