Course Syllabus and Policy Requirement Statement In order to access your course materials, you must agree to the following, by clicking the "Mark Reviewed" button below. By checking the "Mark Reviewed" link below, you are indicating the following: You have read, understood, and will comply with the policies and procedures listed in the class syllabus, and that you have acquired the required textbook(s). You have read, understood, and will comply with class policies and procedures as specified in the online Student Handbook. You have read, understood, and will comply with computer and software requirements as specified with Browser Test. You have familiarized yourself with how to access course content in Blackboard using the Student Quick Reference Guide. CCSS 4391 Research - Cultural Competency and Contemporary Security Issues in Asia Course Description/Overview This course focuses on current and recent major issues within the continent of Asia. It focuses on key regions in Asia that impact American interests and foreign policy. While engaging in critical analysis of current issues, it examines the broader conceptual context and analytic framework that explains interactions within the region and the international arena. The course will provide the student with a knowledge of the important challenges and initiatives within key regions on the Asian continent that impact regional security, international security, and the national security priorities of the United States. Click this link for a printable version of the syllabus. Course Objectives/Learning Outcomes Objectives: As a result of completing this course, the student will be able to: Comprehend the details and priorities of the political, cultural, and military issues in key regions on the Asian continent. Analyze the role of the international community and the United States when it comes to regional security issues in key regions on the Asian continent.
Analyze and articulate the events and changing paradigms that have occurred since the end of the Cold War in key regions on the Asian continent. Grading Policies Assignment Percent of Grade Due Discussion Thread participation 30% (occurs in weeks with no written assignment). Each posting should be between 150-300 words. Midterm Powerpoint Presentation Final Essay 30% Due Sunday at the end of week 5 before 2100 hrs. CST. 5-7 slide PowerPoint presentation. 40% Due Friday at the end of week 8 before 2100 hrs. CST. 5-7 page essay. Angelo State University employs a letter grade system. Grades in this course are determined on a percentage scale: A = 90 100 % B = 80 89 % C = 70 79 % F = 59 % and below. Course Organization: Lesson One: Introduction to the Context and Broad-Based Issues in Asia: Asia is easily the largest continent on earth. In fact, the politics, culture and security issues in Asia are as divergent (or more) as anywhere else. It will be the goal of this lesson to address some of the broad based issues that exist in three key regions in Asia - Northeast Asia, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. For the purposes of this lesson (and course) the Middle East will not be included in the various case studies and analysis (the Middle East will be addressed in separate classes). While the issues in Asia are as widely varied as the continent itself, they are quite compelling. In this lesson, we will explore the broad based complexities inherent in the three key regions in Asia addressed above. Lesson Two: India-Pakistan: Key Security Issues: Following WWII, the United Kingdom granted independence to what they
called their "Indian Colony." The vast expanse of South Asia that the British had called "India" was sharply divided along both ethnic and religious lines. The result of independence ended up being three independent and unstable nation-states (India, Pakistan, and eventually Bangladesh). It also resulted in disputes over territory - particularly in Kashmir (a region in the north of South Asia that also borders China). The territorial disputes and the tensions remain - though India is now a stable, in many ways economically prosperous, democracy. Pakistan decidedly is not. Bangladesh remains extremely economically challenged. This lesson will look at the reasons behind the tensions and resulting security challenges, and discuss two key security issues - the dispute over Kashmir, and the nuclear stand-off between India and Pakistan. Lesson Three: The U.S. and China: Friends or Competitors?: China has always been the largest, most powerful nation in East Asia. But China went through a period in the 19th and 20th centuries where its power - both economic and military - was greatly weakened, and it was largely dominated by Western powers. This period has ended. China is now rapidly growing into the world's largest economy and its military is growing as its economy explodes. This leads one to ask the question, why would China want to grow the capabilities of its military? Is it to threaten the interests of the United States in Asia? Does the leadership in China desire a partnership with the United States, or a competition - or even ultimately an arms race? In this lesson, we will address key issues relating to the China - U.S. question. Lesson Four: China and its Neighbors: Is the Middle Kingdom Back?: China has traditionally been known as the "Middle Kingdom." This can be translated to mean (and is by many historians and regional experts) that China is the center or Asia, and all important things revolve around it. For centuries it actually was that way - and many would say that once again, China is the true center of power and tradition in Asia. The goal of this lesson will be to examine China's relationships with several key neighbors - Korea, Japan, and Taiwan. China has relationships with all of its neighbors and all over Asia - but the relationships Beijing has with these nations are (arguably) its most important. Lesson Five: Southeast Asian Security Issues: Southeast Asia is a region that many Americans have visited - either on vacation or when they were on active duty military service. This is a vast region that stretches from Vietnam, Thailand, and Cambodia, to Indonesia, and the Philippines, down to Australia. There are important issues in the region. Many of them are maritime issues such as piracy or the Spratly Islands dispute, and some of the issues deal with nation-states who have interests there - such as the United States and China. In this lesson we will focus on an overall examination of all of the security issues in Southeast Asia, and then focus on one specific issue - territorial disputes in the South China Sea (particularly the Spratly Islands).
Lesson Six: The North Korea Question: North Korea is a country that has been a thorn in the side of American policy makers and military planners since the day the NKPA launched a full-scale attack across the 38th parallel into South Korea in 1950. North Korea continues to be a nation-state that hangs on to its unique Asia communist ideology, maintains one of the largest conventional militaries on earth, and develops, deploys, and proliferates weapons of mass destruction and the platforms to launch them (ballistic missiles). The struggling economy in North Korea affects all of this. Thus, it will be the goal of this lesson to give the student insights into the often asked "North Korea Question." Lesson Seven: Japan and the United States: Past, Present, and Future: Japan and the United States have certainly come a long way in their relationship. Japan has gone from being a hated enemy during WWII to being one of America's most stalwart and trusted allies, and a solid economic partner. There have been many changes in Japan and in the U.S. - Japan relationship over the years. The horrors of the recent earthquakes in Japan are still being felt and have affected commerce all over the world. The military relationship between Japan and America is evolving as well. And the debate over the future of Japan's defense forces is one that will hold ramifications for all of Asia. In this lesson, we will examine the important Japanese - U.S. relationship, and also focus on the future roles, missions, strategy, and changes likely for Japanese defense forces. Lesson Eight: Assessment: This week is set aside for the student to complete a 5-7 page essay assignment. The purpose of this assignment is to measure student mastery of the course objectives. Course Bibliography and Required Readings: Basrur, Rajesh M., "India: Security Challenges and Response," South Asia Together International Centre, February 2005. Bechtol, Bruce, E. Jr., "The Implications of the Cheonan Sinking: A Security Studies Perspective," International Journal of Korean Unification Studies, Vol. 19, No. 2, 2010. BURGESS, J. PETER, "The Politics of the South China Sea: Territoriality and International Law," Security Dialogue Vol. 34, no. 1, March 2003. Bush, Richard, "Kim Jong-il's Death and North Korea's Succession Process," Brookings Institution, @Brookings Video, December 19, 2011, Watch the entire video. Chanlett-Avery, Emma, William H. Cooper, and Mark E. Manyin, "Japan- U.S. Relations: Issues for Congress," Congressional Research Service, CRS Report for Congress, March 24, 2011. "China's Military Power is Getting Stronger," CNN Report, Mar 28, 2009. Chinoy, Mike, "The South China Sea: Troubled Waters," USC U.S. - China Institute, Video, September 17, 2010.
Chu, Shulong, and Gilbert Rozman, EAST ASIAN SECURITY:TWO VIEWS, Strategic Studies Institute Monograph, (Carlisle, PA: US Army War College, November, 2007). Hoodbhoy, Pervez, "INDIA, PAKISTAN - THE NUCLEAR ISSUE," Youtube Video, 2008. "India, Pakistan, and Kashmir: The Partition of India," The Economist, Videographic, November 17, 2009. Jha, Saurav, "China's Kashmir Gambit Raises Stakes in India-Pakistan Dispute," World Press Review, September 7, 2010. Levidis, Andrew, "The Legitimacy of Japan's Self Defense Forces," East Asia Forum, May 28, 2011. Lodhi, Maleeha, "Security Challenges in South Asia," James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, Monterey Institute of International Studies, 2001. "NORTH KOREA'S NUCLEAR AND MISSILE PROGRAMS," International Crisis Group, Asia Report N 168 18 June 2009. Paul, Joshy M., "Emerging Powers and Cooperative Security in Asia," RSIS Working Paper, December 20, 2010. "Rising anger over China-Japan diplomatic row," AlJazeera Report, November 6, 2010. Rolfe, Jim, "Security In Southeast Asia: It's Not About the War on Terrorism," Asia-Pacific Security Studies, Volume 1, No. 3, June 2002. Sutter, Robert G., Chinese Foreign Relations: Power and Policy since the Cold War, (Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield, 2008). This reading is available on Kindle. Thayer, Carlyle A., Southeast Asia: Patterns of Security Cooperation, East Asia Forum, October 29, 2010. The Consequences of Nuclear Conflict between India and Pakistan," Natural Resources Defense Council, June 4, 2002. "The Conventional Military Balance on the Korean Peninsula," The International Institute for Strategtic Studies, 2011. Communication Office Hours/Contacting the Instructor See the Instructor Information section for contact information. University Policies Academic Integrity Angelo State University expects its students to maintain complete honesty and integrity in their academic pursuits. Students are responsible for understanding and complying with the university Academic Honor Code and the ASU Student Handbook. Accommodations for Disability The Student Life Office is the designated campus department charged with the responsibility of reviewing and authorizing requests for reasonable
accommodations based on a disability, and it is the student's responsibility to initiate such a request by contacting the Student Life Office at (325) 942-2191 or (325) 942-2126 (TDD/FAX) or by e-mail at Student.Life@angelo.edu to begin the process. The Student Life Office will establish the particular documentation requirements necessary for the various types of disabilities. Student absence for religious holidays A student who intends to observe a religious holy day should make that intention known in writing to the instructor prior to the absence. A student who is absent from classes for the observance of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence.