The Eurasian Century: Hot Wars, Cold Wars, and the Making of the Modern World

An urgent and incisive new framework for understanding the origins—and stakes—of global conflict with China, Russia, and Iran. 

We often think of the contemporary era as the age of American power. In reality, we’re living in a long and violent Eurasian century. That giant, resource-rich landmass possesses the bulk of the global population, industrial might, and potential military power; it touches all four of the great oceans. Eurasia is a strategic prize without equal, which is why the world has been roiled, reshaped, and nearly destroyed by clashes over the supercontinent. 

Since the early 20th century, autocratic powers—from Germany under Kaiser Wilhelm II to the Soviet Union—have aspired to dominate by seizing commanding positions in the world’s strategic heartland. Offshore sea powers, namely the United Kingdom and the United States, have sought to make the world safe for democracy by keeping Eurasia in balance. America’s rivalries with China, Russia, and Iran are the next round in this geopolitical game. If this new authoritarian axis succeeds in enacting a radically revised international order, America and other democracies will be vulnerable and insecure. 

Hal Brands, a renowned expert on global affairs, argues that a better understanding of Eurasia’s strategic geography can illuminate the contours of rivalry and conflict in today’s world. The Eurasian Century explains how revolutions in technology and warfare and the rise of toxic imperialist ideologies have made Eurasia the center of 20th-century geopolitics— with pressing implications for the struggles that will define the 21st.