Which country is more powerful today: Japan or UK?

[hangfan91]

Which country do you think is more powerful today?

[dead0man]

It has to be the UK.  They spend $10B more a year for one.  Their military is a full military with equipment and training on all aspects of war, not just defense of the home island. 


...but its getting closer and Japan probably has a higher ceiling if the たわごと hits the fan.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

The UK is more powerful today, but I can easily see Japan taking that spot within a decade, tho that isn't certain.

[ingemann]

It has to be the UK.  They spend $10B more a year for one.  Their military is a full military with equipment and training on all aspects of war, not just defense of the home island. 


...but its getting closer and Japan probably has a higher ceiling if the たわごと hits the fan.

I'm not so sure, yes Japan can create a greater army than UK, but the primary difference is that UK is a position where they can focus on projecting power (who's going to attack UK; France or Germany?). Japan on the other hand with its large hostile neighbour, always have to focus on defending the homeland. UK even if USA hanged them out to dry, could always expect some support from its European neighbours (unless they really did something stupid). While even Japan's regional "friends" hate them.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

As a British person I genuinely don't care.

But I would like to mention something amusing. Back in the late 90s the geography textbooks at school had a special topic about 'superpowers'. Now you can probably work out how outdated these textbooks were, because one of the countries mentioned (in the context of: clearly rising economically forever) was Japan.

[compson III]

Japan has almost no upside.  The more it acquires power the more it would just push Korea, Thailand, Vietnam etc. back to a more neutral stance vis a vis China.  Only as a partner with US is there power.

[Blair]

Yeah in the 80's everyone said that Japan would be a superpower by 2000, but then their economy pretty much crashed in the 90's, and the country never really got going again.

However, if the UK continues to head towards a Brexit then our power is going to decrease

[○∙◄☻¥tπ[╪AV┼cVê└]

Japan has a $5 trillion economy, while the UK is $3 trillion.

[politicus]

Japan has a $5 trillion economy, while the UK is $3 trillion.

Yes. On the other hand Londons significance as a financial center, the Commonwealth and British soft power should count for something. British media and cultural products are a lot more influential than they ought to be based on its economy and population. British universities attract a lot of foreign students and top researchers. British "systems" and ways of doing things are still the model for a lot of former colonies etc. All this is declining, but still a factor.

[Bunwahaha [still dunno why, but well, so be it]]

(who's going to attack UK; France or Germany?)

And why not both?

If only Napoléon had decided to use the 'camp de Boulogne' instead of running toward Austerlitz...

And when you think that Waterloo has sometimes been close to turn the other way...

Gosh, you wouldn't have to answer this question today...

And about soft power, Japan is not at all the last one at this game, through economy, technology, and culture...

While yeah, UK influence seems to be desperately declining...