美国实力的现实与局限

The Reality and Limits of American Power

尽管美国实力的现实表现得非常明显,而且没有一个可与其实力相媲美的强有力的竞争对手,但如果其采取单边主义行为,它的局限就会表现出来。美国的政治、安全、军事、经济以及媒体等各个方面的实力都是客观存在的。美国所犯的错误可能不会导致世界秩序的崩溃,但极有可能削弱美国的相对实力并且疏远与其它国家的关系,从而弱化美国实力的效能,使美国的单边主义实现自我修正。

Although the reality of American power is impressive and there is no potential opponent with comparable capabilities, there are limits to what the United States can do if it acts unilaterally. This is true of all kinds of American power: political, security, military, economy, and media. American mistakes are not likely to produce a collapse of the world order, but rather a weakening of the relative power of the US and an alienation of other countries. This is likely to lead in turn to either a reduction in the effectiveness of American power or to a self-correction of American unilateralism.