Command of the commons creates additional collective goods for U.S. allies.
These collective goods help connect U.S. military power to seemingly prosaic welfare concerns. U.S. military power underwrites world trade, travel, global telecommunications, and commercial remote sensing, which all depend on peace and order in the commons. Those nations most involved in these activities, those who profit most from globalization, seem to understand that they benefit from the U.S. military position—which may help explain why the world’s consequential powers have grudgingly supported U.S. hegemony.

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Posen, Barry R. "Command of the Commons: The Military Foundation of U.S. Hegemony." International Security. Vol. 28, No. 1 (Summer 2003): 5-46. [ 3 quotes ] [ page 46 ]