Middle power Middle power is a term in the field of international relations that describes states that are not superpowers or great power s , but still have large or moderate influence and international recognition . Definition . No agreed standard method defines which states are middle powers . Some researchers use Gross National Product ( GNP ) statistics to draw lists of middle powers around the world . Economically , middle powers are generally those that are not considered too " big " or too " small , " however that is defined . However , economics is not always the defining factor . Under the original sense of the term , a middle power was one that had some degree of influence globally , but did not dominate in any one area . However , this usage is not universal , and some define middle power to include nations that can be regarded as regional power s . According to academics at the University of Leicester and University of Nottingham ; " middle power status is usually identified in one of two ways . The traditional and most common way is to aggregate critical physical and material criteria to rank states according to their relative capabilities . Because countries ' capabilities differ , they are categorized as superpowers ( or great powers ) , middle powers or small power s . More recently , it is possible to discern a second method for identifying middle power status by focusing on behavioural attributes . This posits that middle powers can be distinguished from superpowers and smaller powers because of their foreign policy behaviour – middle powers carve out a niche for themselves by pursuing a narrow range and particular types of foreign policy interest . In this way middle powers are countries that use their relative diplomatic skills in the service of international peace and stability . Both measures are contested and controversial , though the traditional quantitative method has proved more problematic than the behavioural method . " According to Eduard Jordaan of the University of Stellenbosch ; " All middle powers display foreign policy behaviour that stabilises and legitimises the global order , typically through multilateral and cooperative initiatives . However , emerging and traditional middle powers can be distinguished in terms of their mutually - influencing constitutive and behavioural differences . Constitutively , traditional middle powers are wealthy , stable , egalitarian , social democratic and not regionally influential . Behaviourally , they exhibit a weak and ambivalent regional orientation , constructing identities distinct from powerful states in their regions and offer appeasing concessions to pressures for global reform . Emerging middle powers by contrast are semi - peripheral , materially inegalitarian and recently democratised states that demonstrate much regional influence and self - association . Behaviourally , they opt for reformist and not radical global change , exhibit a strong regional orientation favouring regional integration but seek also to construct identities distinct from those of the weak states in their region . " Another definition , by the Middle Power Initiative : " Middle power countries are politically and economically significant , internationally respected countries that have renounced the nuclear arms race , a standing that give them significant international credibility . " Under this definition however , nuclear - armed states like India and Pakistan , and every state participant of the NATO nuclear weapons sharing , would not be middle powers . Middle power diplomacy . According to Laura Neak of the International Studies Association : " Although there is some conceptual ambiguity surrounding the term middle power , middle powers are identified most often by their international behavior – called ' middle power diplomacy ' — the tendency to pursue multilateral solutions to international problems , the tendency to embrace compromise positions in international disputes , and the tendency to embrace notions of ‘ good international citizenship ’ to guide . . . diplomacy . Middle powers are states who commit their relative affluence , managerial skills , and international prestige to the preservation of the international order and peace . Middle powers help to maintain the international order through coalition - building , by serving as mediators and " go - betweens , " and through international conflict management and resolution activities , such as UN peacekeeping . Middle powers perform these internationalist activities because of an idealistic imperative they associate with being a middle power . The imperative is that the middle powers have a moral responsibility and collective ability to protect the international order from those who would threaten it , including , at times , the great or principal powers . This imperative was particularly profound during the most intense periods of the Cold War . " According to Soeya Yoshihide ; " Middle Power does not just mean a state ’ s size or military or economic power . Rather , ' middle power diplomacy ' is defined by the issue area where a state invests its resources and knowledge . Middle Power States avoid a direct confrontation with great powers , but they see themselves as ‘ moral actors ’ and seek their own role in particular issue areas , such as human rights , environment , and arms regulations . Middle powers are the driving force in the process of transnational institutional - building . " ( Soeya Yoshihide ) Characteristics of middle power diplomacy include : ( Soeya Yoshihide ) In March 2008 , Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd defined his country ' s foreign policy as one of " middle power diplomacy " , along the lines of similar criteria . Australia would " influence international decision - makers " on issues such as " global economic , security and environmental challenges " . The Middle Powers Initiative ( MPI ) , a program of the Global Security Institute , highlights the importance of middle powers diplomacy . Through MPI , eight international non - governmental organizations are able to work primarily with middle power governments to encourage and educate the nuclear weapons states to take immediate practical steps that reduce nuclear dangers , and commence negotiations to eliminate nuclear weapons . Middle power countries are particularly influential in issues related to arms control , being that they are politically and economically significant , internationally respected countries that have renounced the nuclear arms race , a standing that gives them significant political credibility . History of the term . The concept of the ‘ middle power ’ dates back to the origins of the European state system . In the late 16th century , Italian political thinker Giovanni Botero divided the world into three types of states – grandissime ( empires ) , mezano ( middle powers ) and piccioli ( small powers ) . According to Botero , a mezano or middle power “ . . . has sufficient strength and authority to stand on its own without the need of help from others . ” The term entered Canadian political discourse after the Second World War . Prime Minister Louis St . Laurent , for example called Canada " a power of the middle rank " and helped to lay out the classical definition of Canadian middle power diplomacy . When he was advocating for Canada ' s election to the United Nations Security Council , he said that while " . . . the special nature of [ Canada ' s ] relationship to the United Kingdom and the United States complicates our responsibilities , " Canada was not a " satellite " of either but would " continue to make our decisions objectively , in the light of our obligations to our own people and their interest in the welfare of the international community . " Canadian leaders believed Canada was a middle power because it was a junior partner in larger alliances ( e . g . NATO , NORAD ) , was actively involved in resolving disputes outside its own region ( e . g . Suez Crisis ) , was not a former colonial power and therefore neutral in anti - colonial struggles , worked actively in the United Nations to represent the interests of smaller nations and to prevent the dominance of the superpowers ( often being elected to the United Nations Security Council for such reasons ) , and because it was involved in humanitarian and peacekeeping efforts around the world . List of middle powers . The following is a list of countries that have been called middle powers by academics or other experts . The United Kingdom , China , France , United States and Russia are great powers due to their military and strategic importance , their status as recognised nuclear powers and their permanent seats on the UN Security Council . Some academics also believe that Germany and Japan are not middle powers but great powers , due to their large advanced economies and global influence . The overlaps between the lists of middle powers and great powers , and between the lists of small powers and middle powers , show that there is no unanimous agreement among authorities . Middle power groupings . Middle powers often work together at the United Nations , where they work to prevent the great powers from monopolizing the agenda . The Uniting for Consensus Group ( Italy , Canada , Spain , Mexico , South Korea , Turkey , Argentina , Pakistan , Malta ) is a group of middle powers active in the debate over possible reform of the UN Security Council . Specifically , they oppose giving permanent seats to the presumptive great powers of G4 ( Brazil , Germany , India , and Japan ) . The JACKSNNZ countries ( Japan , Australia , Canada , South Korea , Switzerland , Norway and New Zealand ) are a loose grouping of wealthy middle power countries that emerged during the Biological and Toxins Weapons Convention talks in 2006 in opposition to the position of the United States . The Cairns Group is a group of 19 agricultural exporting countries , composed of Argentina , Australia , Bolivia , Brazil , Canada , Chile , Colombia , Costa Rica , Guatemala , Indonesia , Malaysia , New Zealand , Pakistan , Paraguay , Peru , the Philippines , South Africa , Thailand , and Uruguay .