Should the United States play an important role as super power in the world in the years ahead ?

idk35r34r, thank you for accepting the debate. World is watching whether the war fighting between Russia and Ukraine will move into peaceful and negotiable 

situation or continue present dangerous situation which might develop into more harmful and destructive war.  The most important thing is that whether the United States can succeed in deterring  Russia from the brutal aggression in Ukraine.  To make this strategy successful, the U.S. and allied countries should supply 

highly sophisticated weapons to Ukraine to discourage  the fighting will among Russian soldiers.

So far, China has been supplying military weapons to Russia as an allied country.  However, unfortunately Chinese weapons are inferior to the U.S. weapons in 

terms of the quality, sophistication and precision these days. 

Since the outbreak of the war in February ,2022. Chinese  scientists and engineers have been engaging in research and development in the advanced military weapons used in the war under the direction of the government.  However, these days many of them are emigrating to foreign countries.  Main reason is that they want to get freedom and realize their dreams in the Western democratic counties where freedom of expression and job mobility is guaranteed.

Moreover, recently the U.S. government has ordered American engineers working in semi-conductor companies in China for leaving the country. 

The main reason is that the U.S. government is worried about that the highly advanced technology which are being developed by them might be used to make 

highly sophisticated military weapons of China.   It is certain that this American strategy contributes to damaging the quality and sophistication of military equipment of China.  And ultimately, this causes the inferiority in the quality and reliability of military equipment used by Russian forces. 

On the other hand, Ukraine can be fighting very advantageously by deploying weapons mainly made by the U.S. and Germany. 

``The biggest donation is coming from the United States- 31M1 Abrams, enough to supply one Ukrainian military battalion. The Abrams is one of the most sophisticated tank systems in the world.``1)   And ``given the quality advantage of the Leopard or Abrams over even the most modern Russian tank, if the West 

could supply 500 to 1,000tanks, it would make a massive difference to the Ukrainians and to the war.``2) 

Many Ukranian people hope the end of terror from their every day life. The U.S. must tackle for the liberation of Ukraine with the allied countries of the West. 

The U.S. should play a decisive role as superpower by offering military, financial and technical aid for Ukraine by cooperating  with the West in the years ahead.

From above arguments, I believe that the United States should play an important role as influential superpower in helping make the world with less military conflict and the world without the threat of nuclear war.

     References: 1),2)  `Will tank influx turn the tide in Ukraine ? `,  The Japan Times, January 27, 2023.                                              

Unfortunately, Con forfeited the argument for Round 1.  However, I continue my arguments.  The important thing is that we must think about the power in world 

politics or international relations.   What is superpower ?  Before discussing this problem, what is power ?  Joseph S. Nye Jr. argues that ``power is the ability to achieve one`s purposes or goals. The dictionary tells us that it is the ability to do things and control others. Robert Dahl, a leading political scientist, defines power 

as the ability to get others to do what they otherwise would not do.``1)     Based on this definition, I believe that a country which can exsert forceful and influential power in the global stage what we call superpower has the ability and power to make many allied countries obeying in the policy ordered by a superpower

and has the power to act and cooperate with them as long as possible.  Furthermore, a country with superpower has the competitive and advantageous power mainly

in the fields of economy, military, diplomatic negotiation, global trade and science and technology compared with the rest of the countries. 

Taking these factors into consideration, we can say that the U.S. has the superpower. 

 Nye.Jr. argues that `` the twenty- first century will certainly see a greater role for informational and institutional power, but military force will remain an important 

factor. Economic scale, both in markets and in natural resources , will also remain important.``2) 

Furthermore, we can point out that the power of the U.S. dollar which is regarded as the world currency and is used widely in global trade.  Therefore, dollar is the 

hegemonic currency or the most powerful and reliable currency in the world.  This shows that the U.S. dollar is the reflection of the superpower of the U.S. .    

By the way, recently the U.S. supplied sophisticated weapons to Ukraine by accepting the agreement with one of its allied countries, Germany. 

This supportive action for Ukraine taken the U.S. as the superpower contributes to encouraging many soldiers for fighting the war against Russia. 

From the arguments so far, I believe that we should admit that American involvement in the war as the superpower country , offering advanced military equipment has paved the way for deterring the war from escalating into more dreadful conflict from present situation in the years ahead. 

                References: 1)  Power in the global information age, Routledge, 2004. p.53.

                                         2)  Power in the global information age, p. 57-58. 

Unfortunately, Con forfeited Round 2 again. I continue my argument. This is my last one. The U.S. participated in the war indirectly between Russia and Ukraine with 

Germany and other Western allies by offering highly advanced military weapons.  Christopher Coldwell points out that ``in a age of smart devices, robotics and remote control , the United States`s involvement in the war has always been greater than it appeared.``1)  And ``most of the new weapon`s destructive power comes from their being found into an American information network, a package of services that keeps working independently of the warrior and will not be fully shared with the warrior.`` 2)     This is very important as the superpower among the democratic countries of the West. The main object is to eliminate the threat of cruel attacks by the Russian forces against Ukraine.  Promoting for de-escalating the war with the allied countries is the urgent mission and duty of the U.S. as the superpower. 

Regarding to this problem, Ross Douthat argues that ``why the Biden White House and our European allies are cautiously- and with a certain amount of Germanic 

hesitancy- turning the dial of escalation, enabling an increase in tanks and heavy armor flowing into Ukraine. So far this is not a policy designed to completely overwhelm a Russian mobilization or drive the Russians out of Ukraine. It`s a policy seemingly intended to blunt any new offensive, to potentially make the Russians 

lose more ground, and to show Moscow that it can`t win a grinding war any more easily than it initially hoped to win a short one. It`s an escalation that assumes the Russians need a little more convincing, and then they`ll be open to the de-escalation that we haven`t  been able to achieve.``3)   

These days neighboring countries which border with Russia are showing their strong interest in supporting American and European involvement in the war. 

``Officials from ex- Soviet states in central Asia and the Caucasus say the war has prompted their government to look for ways to reduce dependence on Moscow 

by turning to rival powers including Turkey, the European Union and Middle East countries.``4) 

They expect and desire the war will end and Ukraine will be liberated from aggression and horror by Russia as early as possible. To live up to their expectation, 

American involvement in the war as the superpower is urgently required.   By the way, what is the strong motivation which the U.S. is backing Ukraine  in the war ?

This is very important problem. Robert Kagan, the Brookings Institution historian, argues that ``in both world wars and throughout the Cold War, Americans acted 

not in immediate self-defense but to defend the liberal world against challenges from militaristic authoritarian governments, just as they are doing today in Ukraine. 

Americans continually struggle to reconcile contradictory interpretations of their interests- one focused on security of the homeland and one focused on defense of 

the liberal world beyond America`s shores.`` 5) 

We could say that the war between Russia and Ukraine is the military conflict over democratic ideas and authoritarian ideas. 

From the arguments so far, I believe that the U.S. should play a vital role as the superpower globally in defending the idea of democracy which prioritizes freedom and human dignity among people of the world in the years ahead.  Many people of the world expect the leadership and diplomatic power of the U.S. on the global stage. 

                          References: 1),2) `Russia and Ukraine have incentives to negotiate. The U.S. has other plans.` The New York Times International Edition, February 8, 

                                                                   2023.

                                                    3) `The logic of escalation in Ukraine`, The New York Times International Edition, January 27, 2023.

                                                    4) `Putin`s neighbors pushed toward new allies by war`,  The Japan Times, February 2, 2023.

                                                    5) Thomas L. Friedman, `Year two of the Ukraine war will get scary`,  The New York Times International Edition, February 7, 2023.