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Regular version of the site
Bachelor 2020/2021

Modern Geopolitics

Category 'Best Course for New Knowledge and Skills'
Area of studies: International Relations
When: 1 year, 4 module
Mode of studies: distance learning
Instructors: Andrei Skriba
Language: English
ECTS credits: 3
Contact hours: 30

Course Syllabus

Abstract

This course offers an introduction into modern geopolitics, starting from the origins of classical geopolitics and continuing the discussion with the deep analysis of the examined country cases, including the United States, Russia, and China. The course will cover the key concepts and ideas in the study of geopolitics and engage with the current dynamics of international relations.
Learning Objectives

Learning Objectives

  • To engage with the key concepts and ideas in traditional geopolitical thought and be able to make a distinction between the study geopolitics and international relations.
  • To evaluate the historical background of geopolitical tradition and know the main geopolitical scholars and their contribution to the evolution of geopolitics as a field of science.
  • To discuss the critical strand in the study of geopolitics and evaluate the relevance of critical geopolitics the nature of in explaining the nature of contemporary international relations.
  • To identify the major geopolitical actors in the global political arena and analyze the distribution of power in the contemporary geopolitical system.
  • To understand the importance of certain geopolitical characteristics and historical background in determining geopolitical objectives of a particular state and its perception of other actors in the global system.
  • To analyze the relationship between the traditional geopolitics and newly emerging trends and ideas in the geopolitical discourse of major geopolitical actors.
Expected Learning Outcomes

Expected Learning Outcomes

  • To be able to evaluate the contemporary patterns of global and regional dynamics by looking at the history of geopolitical thought and employing traditional geopolitical concepts and ideas
  • To develop the factual understanding of the Cold War period, its political dynamics and and a profound impact on geopolitics and international relations
  • To be able to interpret the fundamental developments in the international arena in the post-Cold War era by invoking the main conclusions of geopolitical scholars of the Cold War era
  • To look at the critical tradition in the geopolitical thought and be able to critically analyse the main ideas and propositions of traditional geopolitics
  • To draw on the contemporary cases of geopolitical powers and develop the appreciation of the role of geopolitics in the international politics
  • To understand the nature of interstate relations from the perspective of geopolitical analysis and be able to apply in practice acquired factual knowledge about the classical and modern strand in geopolitics
  • To develop the understanding of the stages in the formation of the United Staes as a geopolitical actors and be able to evaluate its current position in the international arena
  • To engage with the historical transformation of Russia and its unique geographic conditions in order to assess the main priorities and political orientations of Russia as one of the key geopolitical actors
  • To have profound knowledge about China's current geopolitical developments and the possible implications of the rise of China for the distribution of power in the global arena
Course Contents

Course Contents

  • The birth of geopolitics
    The origins of the geopolitical tradition, the key traditional concepts and definitions and their relations to international relations studies; the essential formulations and theories developed by the scholarship working in these traditions
  • The beginning of the Cold War geopolitics
    Geopolitics of the Cold War, classical geopolitical concepts in the context of the bipolar confrontation; the nature of historical circumstances, which defined the US-Soviet relations during the second part of the 20th century; application of classical geopolitical concepts to analyze the essence of the Cold War political order
  • World politics after the Cold War ended
    Post-Cold War geopolitical scholarship challenging the traditional considerations in the field of geopolitical studies; the principal difference between the traditional and contemporary approaches in geopolitical analysis
  • Critical geopolitics
    A vast critique of traditional geopolitical studies; development of critical geopolitics which addressed ever-existing questions and ambiguities in the realm of international politics
  • The key players in contemporary geopolitics
    Currently observed developments in the international realm; assessment of an extended range of new concerns and factors in the global political realm using traditional and contemporary geopolitical formulations; the nature of the newly emergent issues and their impact on the relationship between the major political actors
  • History and geography of the United States
    Geopolitical motives and objectives of the United Sates as the key international players; origins and evolution of the geopolitical thought in the United States; current geopolitical concerns of the United States and the state’s predominance in the global distribution of power
  • History and geography of Russia
    Historical developments and transformations of the Russian states through the lens of geopolitical analysis and by employing classical geopolitical formulations; historical, geographic and political circumstances which laid the foundation of Russian geopolitics
  • History and geography of China
    Emergence of China as the new global power and the logic behind its recent ascendance in the global arena; geopolitical considerations which contributed to shaping both the historical background and modern political objectives of the Chinese state
  • Geopolitics and its value
    An overview of the key concepts and theories in the geopolitical tradition; engagement with the prominent geopolitical scholars and the importance of their work to explaining contemporary international relations
Assessment Elements

Assessment Elements

  • non-blocking Seminar Attendance and Participation
    Medical certificate or any proof of academic activity (e.g. conference) should be handed in to the Administration Office if a student wants to make up for the missed opportunity to get credits. It is obligatory to notify the tutor or the assistants to ask for a special task for the related topic. The tutor should be notified by a student via e-mail during a student’s absence and a medical certificate (or any document explaining the valid reason) should be handed in not later than 2 days after a student has return to studying. Unless these steps are accomplished, a student will get the mark “0” for all seminars they missed.
  • non-blocking In-Class Quizzes
  • non-blocking Map Tests
Interim Assessment

Interim Assessment

  • Interim assessment (4 module)
    0.2 * In-Class Quizzes + 0.2 * Map Tests + 0.6 * Seminar Attendance and Participation
Bibliography

Bibliography

Recommended Core Bibliography

  • Aaltola, M., & Käpylä, J. (2016). U.S. and Chinese Silk Road initiatives: towards a geopolitics of flows in Central Asia and beyond. Germany, Europe: B. Budrich. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.849A1B4A
  • Bandeira, M., & Guimarães, S. P. (2017). The Second Cold War : Geopolitics and the Strategic Dimensions of the USA. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1527484
  • Black, J. (2016). Geopolitics and the Quest for Dominance. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1092425
  • Cohen, S. B. (2015). Geopolitics : The Geography of International Relations (Vol. Third edition). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=920009
  • Dittmer, J., & Sharp, J. (2014). Geopolitics : An Introductory Reader. Hoboken: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=806225
  • Editorial article. (2016). International Conference “Shifting Geopolitics & Security Among Major Powers: China, Russia & The United States.” Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.EE78FABD
  • Guiora, A. N. (2014). Modern Geopolitics and Security : Strategies for Unwinnable Conflicts. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=661020
  • Ikenberry, G. J. (2014). The Illusion of Geopolitics. Foreign Affairs, 93(3), 80. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=f5h&AN=95603432
  • Jones, B. (2014). Fueling a new order? : The new geopolitical and security consequences of energy / Bruce Jones, David Steven, and Emily O’Brien. Washington/D.C: Brookings. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edswao&AN=edswao.413071278
  • Kappel, R. (DE-588)137762747, (DE-576)161650112. (2015). Global power shifts and challenges for the global order / Robert Kappel. Lisboa: Instituto Marquês de Valle Flôr. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edswao&AN=edswao.468206930
  • Kurecic, P. (2015). Geoeconomic and Geopolitical Conflicts: Outcomes of the Geopolitical Economy in a Contemporary World. World Review of Political Economy, 6(4), 522–543. https://doi.org/10.13169/worlrevipoliecon.6.4.0522
  • Modern Geostrategy ; Geostrategy and Geopolitics. (2017). Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.25D67EDD
  • Wrobel, R. M. (2019). Chinese geopolitics in Southeast Asia : a new pattern of economic power within ASEAN? Asiatische Studien : Zeitschrift Der Schweizerischen Asiengesellschaft / Études Asiatiques : Revue de La Société Suisse-Asie, (1), 149. https://doi.org/10.5169/seals-823081

Recommended Additional Bibliography

  • An, N., & Zhu, H. (2018). Conceptual and theoretical debates in modern geopolitics and their implications for Chinese geopolitics. Area Development & Policy, 3(3), 368–382. https://doi.org/10.1080/23792949.2017.1405732
  • Arctic Geopolitics, Media and Power. (2019). Netherlands, Europe: Taylor & Francis. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.BD2F7482
  • Baldwin, D. A. (2016). Power and International Relations : A Conceptual Approach. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1090916
  • Chaziza, M. (2018). The Chinese Maritime Silk Road Initiative: The Role of the Mediterranean. Mediterranean Quarterly, 29(2), 54–69. https://doi.org/10.1215/10474552-6898099
  • Geography, Power, Strategy and Defence Policy: Essays in Honour of Paul Dibb. (2016). Netherlands, Europe: ANU Press. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.C0AF7690
  • Kramer, P. A. (2018). The Geopolitics of Mobility: Immigration Policy and American Global Power in the Long Twentieth Century. American Historical Review, 123(2), 393–438. https://doi.org/10.1093/ahr/123.2.393
  • Mothata, L. (2016). What to make of the new world order. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.FE0C62DC
  • Muscarà, L. (2017). Geopolitics and the Quest for Dominance. Journal of Interdisciplinary History, 47(4), 537–538. https://doi.org/10.1162/JINH_r_01054
  • Muzalevsky, R. (2015). China’s rise and reconfiguration of Central Asia’s geopolitics : a case for U.S. “pivot” to Eurasia / Roman Muzalevsky. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsgpr&AN=edsgpr.000967969
  • P. P. Brazhnikov. (2015). A Case of Struggle between Land and Sea Powers: A Critical Geopolitcs Viewpoint. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.4830EE70
  • Sloan, G. R. (2017). Geopolitics, Geography and Strategic History. Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsebk&AN=1470129
  • Vasif HUSEYNOV. (2016). Soft power geopolitics: how does the diminishing utility of military power affect the Russia – West confrontation over the “Common Neighbourhood.” Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=edsbas&AN=edsbas.CF22E9A4