The EU is an amalgamation of 28 states (2019) with a GDP of approx US$ 18,800,000 and a single market of approx. 500 million people with the majority of members making up a Eurozone The combined GDP of the EU ranks it at 2nd in the list of states in global politics only very slightly behind that of the United States which implies that it is certainly comparable to the superpower United States in economic measurement We can reach a conclusion that economic power is considered to be an important element of status and significance in global politics and contributes towards the label of superpower with the EU acting as one economically The European Union is a member in its own right of the World Trade Organisation and G20 and is a participant in a number Structural power is considered to be an important element of status and significance in global politics and has allowed the EU to stand up to other significant states such as the EU in trade and political disputes The fact that the EU, as a regional body, is now accepted as a member of key structural bodies and with the same status and power as individual states such as the US would lead to conclusion that it is comparable to the United States in structural measurement. We reach the verdict that this status gives the EU the influence of a superpower The European Union has the world’s largest development aid budget targeted on global South, and to further its influence in the world, is a promoter of human rights globally and has previously won the Nobel Peace Prize. This is the deployment of soft power The increased significance of soft power in global politics and the relative strength of the EU in comparison to the US would develop the view that the EU can certainly be considered as a superpower. We can link this for the EU to be a growth in status Soft power is of growing significance in global politics and whereas the United States has faltered as a result of actions in Iraq and Afghanistan and via the proclamations and actions of Donald Trump, the EU continues to grow in soft power status. We could make a judgement that in soft power terms the EU is not merely comparable but in advance of the US The EU continues to increase the development of its military capability. The continuance of the CSDP, the retention of a nuclear weapons and aircraft carrier capability via constituent members. In addition the EU has a large military manufacturing and development programme. This places the EU at the forefront of global military technology Military power is considered to be a fundamental element of the label of superpower as well as, according to W Fox, a ‘great mobility of power’ which the EU appears to have developed This manifest military base and technological prowess of the EU leads us to conclude that this has given the EU superpower status in line with that of the US. We reach a verdict that the EU satisfies the categorisation or label of superpower, according 2021 Q3A Evaluate the view that the EU has become a superpower, comparable with the United States. AO1 The EU is made up of 28 sovereign states and none are individual equals to the US – a superpower has to be considered an autonomous individual state such as the US or China AO2 The term superpower was initially used to refer to individual states, most notably the US and the Soviet Union rather divides within the EU member states AO3 The significant divisions between the member states of the EU on economic and foreign policy leads us to conclude that there is insufficient unity for the organisation to be considered an economic superpower, comparable to the US The United States is a permanent member of the UN Security Council, a key decision maker in the IMF and W.Bank as well as in G7. The EU does not have this reach of membership of key organisations Despite membership of a few global bodies, the EU isn’t a member of the most important decision making institutions in global politics, most importantly the UN Security Council. This means that the US is stronger in the structural global bodies than the EU A true superpower would be expected to be represented at the top rank of global institutions and to hold primary structural power which the US does but clearly the EU fails to do as yet, so we can conclude the EU isn’t a superpower comparable to the US The United States usually ranks towards the top of the table of soft power, it sets the rules for global economics and has significant cultural influence through US movies, soft drinks, fast foods, technology and music Although individual EU member states may rank highly in soft power tables there are few elements of EU identity which are remotely comparable with those held by the US. When we compare the US with the EU there is a lack of a common brand image which is portrayed by the EU A true superpower would be expected to hold economic, political and also cultural power and significance which the US achieves through various elements of globalisation which no other state can replicate, never mind a regional body such as the EU which therefore isn’t a superpower The United States ranks as the most significant military power in the world with military spending approaching half of global spending, high technology warfare capability and friendly bases a well as aircraft carrier groups stationed globally The EU has no control over member states nuclear capability or aircraft carrier deployment and even collectively it spends only a fraction of the amount that the US spends on military capability Without a coordinated ability to deploy member states military forces and a lack of ability to mobilise military forces globally, the EU can’t be considered a superpower