Global policeman is an informal term for a state which seeks or claims global hegemony. It has been used, firstly for the United Kingdom and, since 1945, of the United States. Nevertheless, the two terms hegemon and global policeman are not identical in meaning. The former term defines capacity for dominant control anywhere on earth, whereas the latter may also include small or large areas outside control, along with monitoring and attempted enforcements, but does not define any level of effectiveness.