IICS 623 Regional Security Challenges and Policy Options
This course will introduce the student to the international relations (IR) of the Middle East/Arabian Gulf. Understanding the current situation requires historical context, and the course will begin with an overview of the region’s history since the end of World War I and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire. The course will then turn to look at four specific aspects of regional security and IR: The Iraq/Iran war and the politics of identity; Energy Security, Oil and Political Economy in the IR of the Middle East; the Gulf Wars and the IR of the Gulf; and the Middle East and its evolving relationship with the US, China, India, Russia and other state actors. IR in the Middle East is shaped by a variety of material factors, including military power and technology; great power intervention; globalization and economic development; geography and natural resources; and demography and migration. The course will look at proposed solutions to conflict and regional conundrums, both in terms of diplomatic approaches to specific conflicts, and broader efforts to address the roots of regional (and global) conflict. For all of these issues, the role and perspective of the UAE will be considered first and foremost.
Offered
Fall Spring