America will continue to be the leading power for a long time to come, given its superiority in information technology and military capability. But the next century will not see a simple, unipolar world. There are reasons for this. The US has its flaws. It has a low savings rate and is the largest debtor nation and therefore vulnerable to short-term capital flows.
Japan is the world's largest creditor, but it has found it difficult to exercise global leadership.
If Japan had really wanted to, it could easily have resolved the economic crisis. Right now, said Yeo, the danger is that Japan could lead the whole world into recession. Europe is coming together despite the disappearance of the Soviet Union, once the common threat of Europe's various tribes. But monetary union will be a major challenge to European cohesion. Reintegrating China into the world is a challenge for everybody.