A major historic shift in global power relations is taking place as the 20th century draws to a close. Today, Asia is vigorously challenging 500 years of Western dominance of world political, economic, technological and cultural affairs.
Statistics tell much of the story.
More than half the world's population lives in Asia, home to humanity's most long-lived civilizations. Rapid economic growth, especially in East Asia, has outpaced that of the West for decades. Early in the 21st century, on current projections, the collective size of Asia's economies will exceed those of Western Europe and North America respectively. China alone could surpass the United States as the world's largest single national economy. Certainly, growth in the region has been accompanied by improvements in a whole range of social indicators.