Where Are the Great Powers? At Home with the Kids

Abstract

only groups of secessionists and aggres sive small powers, such as Serbia, but even mere armed bands can now impose their will or simply rampage, unchecked by any greater force from without. Today there is neither the danger of great power wars nor the relative tranquillity once imposed by each great power within its own sphere of influence. By the traditional definition, great powers were states strong enough to suc cessfully wage war without calling on allies. But that distinction is now out dated, because the issue today is not whether war can be made with or with out allies, but whether war can be made at all. Historically, there have been tacit preconditions to great power status: a readiness to use force whenever it was