Is the special relationship still relevant after the collapse of Communism?
Even more than in the Cold War, the United States is now the leading power in the Western World. Indeed, it is the leading power of the whole world, the only superpower. At the moment, there is no conventional challenge to the United States. The United States spends about five times as much on defence than either Russia or China, and approximately as much as the next eighteen military powers combined (O’Hanlon, 2002: 3). Britain’s situation is little changed. If in the early phases of the Cold War it still retained some imperial aspirations, these are in reality all but gone. There is no British Empire. However, British leaders still want to see Britain play more than a regional role in the world (The Economist, 2002). Indeed, Britain is much more capable of playing such a role than other European countries (excluding France and Russia), since it spends the most on defence (O’Hanlon, 2002: 5). As in the Cold War, a close relationship with the United States gives Britain the opportunity
