Criticism
Despite forecasts that predict the rising economic and political strength of Asia, the idea of an Asian Century has faced criticism. This has included the possibility that the continuing high rate of growth could lead to revolution, economic slumps, and environmental problems, especially in mainland China. Some believe that the 21st century will be multipolar, and no one country or continent will have such a concentration of influence. However some proponents of the Asian Century respond that since the two most populous countries (China and India) are in Asia then it's only natural that they will play a bigger role in the world's affairs than smaller countries and thus it won't be a multipolar century. Finally, although the British Empire was a superpower during the nineteenth century, controlling nearly a quarter of the world's area and population, during the 20th century there was still a balance of political power with the British and other European colonial empires from 1900 until 1945, and with the US and the Soviet Union from 1945 until 1991. However, this is why proponents of the Asian Century don't think one country will dominate world affairs, just that Asia will, primarily China and India. But even today Japan and South Korea are also rather important partly because both are world leaders in information technology
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