Module Objectives

– To give students a grounding in the theory and practice of international security in the contemporary era
– To  develop in students the ability to think critically and constructively about the key debates in international security studies
– To train students to evaluate constructively and analytically  the real challenges or policy-choices confronting policymakers

Course Content

This module examines the various concepts of order and disorder in the pre-Cold War and post-Cold War periods by providing a coherent mixture of theoretical and empirical study-cases in European as well as in international space. The early seminars go through the major theoretical perspectives on security and later seminars discuss some of the key problems those theories try to address.

The following seminars critically evaluate the ability of the main theories of Security Studies to analyze international security focusing on different study cases such as diplomacy and foreign policy, humanitarian intervention and the role of NGOs in humanitarian crises, terrorism and other forms of insecurity (i.e. environmental, societal, etc.), migration policy and refugees, borders in a geographical perspective and the ‘fortress’ of Europe, nationalisms and ethnic conflicts or wars, etc.

Teaching and Assessment

E-class exercises and participation to the lesson (based on the study of the suggested bibliography) can contribute up to 20% of final module mark.

Final exam contributes up to 80% of final module mark.