What is the Second World?

The critical interstitial areas between first world countries.

Parag Khanna: The Second World are the countries that I believe, and they are spread out all over the world, are the most decisive strategic swing states, as I am calling them, for super powers to gain influence; those super powers are European Union, China and the United States. The Second World countries are the ones that are geographically lying between them and that also have lot of strategic resources and growing economic political diplomatic weight.
And so I wanted to psychoanalyze these countries. I wanted to take them from the inside out and figure out how they think. What are they planning to do, how are they going to choose who to align with in the 21st century.
 
Recorded on: 3/3/2008