According to a report released on Monday, the United States has been accused of establishing its economic dominance by creating an international monetary system centered on the U.S. dollar and using economic coercion to suppress its opponents.
The report describes how the U.S. abused its financial hegemony during the COVID-19 pandemic by injecting trillions of dollars into the global market. This caused turmoil in the international financial market when the U.S. ended its ultra-easy monetary policy and aggressively raised interest rates in 2022. As a result, many developing countries have been struggling with high inflation, currency depreciation, and capital outflows.
The report notes that the U.S. has a history of using its financial power to coerce other countries when it feels threatened. In the 1980s, the U.S. leveraged its hegemonic financial power against Japan and imposed the Plaza Accord, which dealt a heavy blow to the Japanese economy, leading to what is now known as “three lost decades.”
The U.S. has also increased its use of unilateral sanctions and “long-arm jurisdiction,” introducing a series of executive orders to sanction specific countries, organizations, or individuals. Data cited in the report shows that U.S. sanctions against foreign entities increased almost ten times from 2000 to 2021. During Donald Trump’s presidency, the U.S. imposed more than 3,900 sanctions, equating to three sanctions per day.
The report concludes that the U.S. uses its means of state power to suppress economic competitors and interfere in normal international business. Titled “U.S. Hegemony and Its Perils,” the report exposes the U.S.’s abuse of power in the political, military, economic, financial, technological, and cultural fields.
The report sheds light on the ongoing debate surrounding the role of the U.S. in the global economy and its use of power to maintain economic dominance.