<P> The post--Cold War era is the period in world history from the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 to the present . The term was criticized for its ambiguity: "Even though it has been ten years since the Berlin Wall came down, wrote Paul Wolfowitz in 2000, we still have no better name for the period in which we live than the post-Cold War era ." The name means that this new era "does not yet have a name ." It was suggested that Pax Americana or "clash of civilisations" would more reflect the reality of the era but such terms would be "offending for many ." The same dilemma expressed Condoleezza Rice: "That we do not know how to think about what follows the US - Soviet confrontation is clear from the continued references to the "post-Cold War period ."' "We knew better where we had been than where we were going ." </P> <P> It has mostly been dominated by the rise of globalization (as well as nationalism and populism in reaction) enabled by the commercialization of the Internet and the growth of the mobile phone system . The ideology of postmodernism and cultural relativism has according to some scholars replaced modernism and notions of absolute progress and ideology . </P> <P> The period has seen the United States become by far the most powerful country in the world and the rise of China from a relatively weak developing country to a fledgling potential superpower . Reacting on the rise of China, the United States has strategically sought to "rebalance" the Asia - Pacific region . It has also seen the merging of most of Europe into one economy and a shift of power from the G7 to the larger G20 . Accompanying the NATO expansion, Ballistic Missile Defenses (BMD) were installed in East Europe . These marked important steps in the military globalization . </P> <P> Environmentalism has also become a mainstream concern in the post-Cold War era following the circulation of widely accepted evidence for human activity's effects on Earth's climate . The same heightened consciousness is true of terrorism, owing largely to the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and their global fallout . </P>

Post cold war era development in international relations