PSC 2478: International Relations of the Middle East

Transcription

1 1 PSC 2478: International Relations of the Middle East Semester: Spring 2018 Time: Mondays and Wednesdays, 4:45 to 6:00pm; Location: Rome 205 Office Hours: by appointment on Fridays between 10am and 1pm, at my office at 1050 Connecticut Ave, suite Lecturer Karen E. Young, PhD Office Hours: by appointment or my other work Course Description This course examines the international relations of the Middle East, focusing on questions of how states developed, what drives conflict, and how the regional order has shifted over time. The course draws on theories of International Relations, and applies them to the politics of the Middle East. The course analyzes the interplay of levels of analyses, with specific attention to the role of ideology, identity, and the interaction between domestic and international politics, in the formulation of foreign policy. The course analyzes the development of the nation-state system in the Middle East, and examines the nature of transnational identities and ideologies. We will consider a number of frameworks for understanding the region s international politics and Great Power involvement, roughly characterized as Realist, Liberal and Constructivist approaches, but we will always focus on how these approaches can help us understand real-world decisions and outcomes. Texts Recommended for purchase: Fawcett, Louise L Estrange, ed International Relations of the Middle East. Fourth edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Assigned readings (N.B. ALL readings available on Blackboard, in pdf format.): Arampatzi, Efstratia, Martijn Burger, Elena Ianchovichina, Tina Röhricht, and Ruut Veenhoven Unhappy Development: Dissatisfaction with Life in the Wake of the Arab Spring. Policy Research Working Papers. The World Bank. doi: / Bilgin, Pinar Inquiring into Others Conceptions of the International and Security. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Bush, Sarah Sunn Varieties of International Influence and the Middle East. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Colgan, Jeff Petro-Aggression: When Oil Causes War. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

2 2 Dodge, Toby The Causes of US Failure in Iraq. Survival 49 (1): doi: / Can Iraq Be Saved? Survival 56 (5): doi: / Esposito, John L., and Emad El-Din Shahin, eds The Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics. First issued as an Oxford University Press paperback. Oxford New York Auckland: Oxford University Press. Ford, Christopher M., Syria: A Case Study in International Law (April 11, 2017). University of Cincinnati Law Review. SSRN: Gause, F. Gregory Ideologies, Alignments, and Underbalancing in the New Middle East Cold War. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Hazbun, Waleed The Politics of Insecurity in the Arab World: A View from Beirut. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Kamrava, Mehran, ed International Politics of the Persian Gulf. Modern Intellectual and Political History of the Middle East. Syracuse, N.Y: Syracuse University Press. Lynch, Marc, and Curtis R. Ryan Introduction. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Phillips, Christopher The Battle for Syria: International Rivalry in the New Middle East. New Haven; London: Yale University Press. Salloukh, Bassel F Overlapping Contests and Middle East International Relations: The Return of the Weak Arab State. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Snider, Erin A International Political Economy and the New Middle East. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s x. Stein, Ewan Ideological Codependency and Regional Order: Iran, Syria, and the Axis of Refusal. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Valbjørn, Morten Strategies for Reviving the International Relations/Middle East Nexus after the Arab Uprisings. PS: Political Science & Politics 50 (03): doi: /s Learning Objectives 1. Gain a greater understanding of the international relations of the Middle East. 2. Understand what different IR theories contribute to our understanding of international politics within and about the Middle East.

3 3 3. Understand the historical perspective and shifts in the balance of power within the Middle East. Class Participation The course will follow a lecture format, with significant time for class discussion. Each member of the class should come prepared to discuss the assigned readings for the week, with prepared notes and outlines. Debate is welcome, but must always be respectful of alternative viewpoints. Attendance and participation are part of your course grade. I encourage you to keep up with events in te region. We will spend some class time each session on current events. Read from multiple sources, and local sources when you can. *Note: If you know that you will miss a class, please inform the instructor before the missed class occurs. Map Quiz In the first month of class, you will take a quiz that requires you to label countries in the MENA region. The map quiz will be held in class on Wednesday, January 31. Country Report/Policy Recommendation As a part of this course, you will be required to write a short briefing on the MENA country of your choice. The briefing should explain the basic structure of the country s government, and a specific and current challenge in international relations this government faces. The briefing should be 3-5 pages, single-spaced/12 pt. font; maps and graphics are in addition to the text, and do not count towards the length-limit. The brief is due, in hard copy format, on Tuesday, October 24 in class. Late assignments will not be accepted. You will present your brief to a small group for feedback in class on March 28. Groups will be formed based on country overlap/issue overlap. Assessment Class Participation/Attendance 10% Map Quiz 10% Country Report 20% Mid-term Exam 30% Final Exam 30% January 17: Course Introduction** Introduction Overview of Syllabus COURSE SCHEDULE January 22: Reviewing International Relations Theory and the Middle East Fawcett, Chapter 1, Fred Lawson IR Theory and the Middle East January 24: Applying IR Theory to Cases Thinking about your Country Briefing Marc Lynch and Curtis Ryan The Arab Uprisings and International Relations Theory

4 4 Political Science & Politics, July 2017, Vol. 50, Number 3. Read the whole Symposium, which we will refer to throughout the course. Focus on this first essay to get an idea of why applying theory to the region has been complicated. Can you describe different theoretical ways to engage current politics in the Middle East? January 29 and 31: Emergence of the Modern State and the Cold War s Impact on the Middle East Fawcett, Chapters 2-3 Eugene Rogan The Emergence of the Middle East into the Modern State System Peter Sluglett The Cold War in the Middle East February 5: Current Politics in the Middle East Accessing news sources and assessing facts and points of view February 7: Map Quiz February 12, 14: Ideology and Islam in Middle East International Relations Fawcett, Chapter 7 Raymond Hinnebusch The Politics of Identity in Middle East International Relations Feb 19 holiday February 21 and 26 Fawcett, Chapter 8 Peter Mandaville Islam and IR in the Middle East: From Umma to Nation State Guest lectures: Dr. Hussein Ibish February 28 Oxford Handbook of Islam and Politics, Chapter 4 and Chapter 20 John Voll Political Islam and the State Moataz Fattah Islam and Politics in the Middle East March 5: Foreign Policymaking in the Middle East Fawcett, Chapter 11 Anoushiravan Ehteshami and Raymond Hinnebusch Foreign Policymaking in the Middle East: Complex Realism March 7: Overlapping Contests: Domestic Transnational and International Politics in the Middle East Bassel Salloukh Overlapping Contests and Middle East International Relations: The Return of the Weak Arab State, Political Science & Politics, July 2017, Vol. 50, Number 3. Considering case studies of current conflicts and their multiple sites of contestation: Yemen, Syria, Iraq.

5 5 Can you identify key actors in these conflicts? Their interests? Ideas and ideologies that motivate them? March 12-17: Spring Break, no class March 19: Political Economy in The International Relations of The Middle East Fawcett, Chapter 5 Giacomo Luciani Oil and Political Economy in the International Relations of the Middle East Erin Snider International Political Economy and the New Middle East, Political Science & Politics, July 2017, Vol. 50, Number 3. March 21: Petro-Aggression Jeff Colgan, Petro-Aggression: When Oil Causes War, Cambridge University Press, Read the Introduction and Chapter 2 ( A Theory of Oil, Revolution, and Conflict ). March 26: Mid-term Exam, in Class March 28: Country Brief Consultations and Research Groups Country Briefs are due in class on April 2. April 2 and 4: Political Reform in the Middle East: The Foundations of the Arab Revolt April 2 Country Brief due in class. Late assignments are not accepted. Fawcett, Chapter 6 Augustus Richard Norton The Puzzle of Political Reform in the Middle East Arampatzi, Efstratia and Burger, Martijn J. and Ianchovichina, Elena and Röhricht, Tina and Veenhoven, Ruut, Unhappy Development: Dissatisfaction with Life on the Eve of The Arab Spring (November 12, 2015). World Bank Policy Research Working Paper No Available at SSRN: April 9 and 11: Security States and Regional Disorder Fawcett, Chapter 9 and 10 Louise Fawcett Alliances and Regionalism in the Middle East Matteo Legrenzi and Marina Calculli Middle East Security: Conflict and Securitization of Identities April 16 and 18: The Rise of the Gulf States in International Politics Fawcett, Chapter 14 Matteo Legrenzi and F. Gregory Gause III The International Politics of the Gulf Gause Ideologies, Alignments, and Underbalancing in the New Middle East Cold War, Political Science & Politics, July 2017, Vol. 50, Number 3. Guest lecture: Dr. Kristin Smith Diwan

6 6 April 23: US Foreign Policy in the Middle East-Case of Israel/Palestine Fawcett, Chapter 16 Michael Hudson The United States in the Middle East Hussein Ibish Trump s Jerusalem Announcement Means the U.S. Can Kiss Its Remaining Moral Authority Goodbye, Daily Beast, Dec. 6, April 25: The International Problem of Iraq Toby Dodge, Can Iraq be Saved? Survival, vol. 56, ed. 5, November Guest lecture: Yerevan Saed on Iraq and Kurdish politics April 30: International Law and Conflict in Middle East, case of Syria Ford, Christopher M., Syria: A Case Study in International Law (April 11, 2017). University of Cincinnati Law Review. Available at SSRN: Christopher Phillips (2016) The Battle for Syria: International Rivalry in the New Middle East. Yale University Press. Chapters 1 and 2. Academic Integrity I expect full compliance with the GW Code of Academic Integrity, which states: Academic dishonesty is defined as cheating of any kind, including misrepresenting one s own work, taking credit for the work of others without crediting them and without appropriate authorization, and the fabrication of information. **Course Schedule or Readings subject to change. Guest lectures may be scheduled in addition to the syllabus planned lecture. Pay attention to /blackboard announcements.