Table of Contents Week 1/2: Geopolitical Theory and Imperialism pg 2 Week 3: WWI, WWII and the Cold War pg 4 Week 4: The Post Cold War-1991-2001 pg 9 Week 5: The Rise of China and the New Great Game...pg 11 Week 6: Nationalism pg 16 Week 7 (break) Week 8: State Secessionism pg 21 Week 9: Globalization pg 25 Week 10: Development pg 28 Week 11: Sustainability and Climate Change pg 31 Week 12: The Future of Geopolitics pg 36 Sample Essay Questions and Answer Guide pg 38 Essay Hints by Week pg 39
Week 1/2: Geopolitical Theory and Imperialism Mahan Thesis rested on the relationship between the political control of the sea and the impact of a powerful navy on a state's foreign policy and economic development. Naval reach and sea power critical component of a state s rise to power. Continental powers (states with land borders) are not as good as sea powers who have maritime boundaries, secure from problems with sharing borders with other countries and more resources to spend on their navy for maritime commerce and area denial. This is seen in the struggle for control over SLOCS in the Indian ocean. Mackinder In 1904, Mackinder defined the core of Eurasia as the Pivot Area, which he later renamed the world s Heartland. He argued that control of the European heartland would give access to major bodies of water and resources, and this provide the greatest chance to project power over the entire world as they held a strategic advantage. His ideas are relevant today as he identified a part of the world which had the most geopolitical influence based on it s resources and location, which is evident in modern resource wars in central Asia. The New Imperialism: 1870 1914 Imperialism is a policy of extending the rule or authority of an empire or nation over foreign countries, or of establishing and acquiring colonies. The new imperialism is a term for the late 19 th and early 20 th century wave of conquests particularity in Africa and Asia by European powers, the US and Japan, which were followed by the development and exploitation of the newly conquered territories for the benefit of the colonial powers. It occurred because of the multipolar system so there was incentive to take control over local states as there was a feeling that terra nullius was running out, and beliefs about cultural and racial superiority made it easier to reject local claims of sovereignty. Scramble for Africa Described the invasion, occupation, colonization, and annexation of African countries by the European imperial power during the New Imperialism between the 1880s and the commencement of World War. France and the UK competed over claiming territory in Africa because they were less developed and were not sovereign states from which they could exert their economic and military influence. The Scramble for Africa had the effect of defusing and displacing tensions between the European powers in Europe, but eventually the tradeoffs and alliances could not disguise the fact that Imperial Germany was on a collision course with Britain and France, which soon disintegrated into World War I. The Great Game Russia and the UK were in conflict over supremacy in Central Asia. UK sought control over most of Central Asia and wanted to prevent Russia from getting to British India, which was considered the crown jewel of it s empire. Tsarist Russia wanted to expand its territory and sphere of influence to create a large land-based empires. Great Game saw UK and Russia intriguing each other across most of Asia from the gulf to pacific, as India and China are currently doing. The New Great Game
is used as a method of describing competition in influence, power, hegemony and profits, all also at stake in the Great Game The New Great Game New 'Great Game' is similarly in the region of Central Asia, a modern variant of the nineteenth century clash of imperial ambitions of Great Britain and Tsarist Russia. It describes the politics of oil particularly in the Caspian region, with the United States predominantly pitted in this resource struggle against Russia, China, and Iran who all competing to dominate the valuable natural resources and pipeline routes in the Caspian region. The connection between oil and conflict: importance of oil as a strategic commodity to the economy and military power of nations, and it s irregular geographic distribution. Buffer states: Buffer states are states lying between two rival or potentially hostile greater powers, which may prevent conflict between them. Buffer states account for over 40 percent of state deaths. While both rivals might prefer to maintain the sovereignty of the buffer state so as to decrease the risk of war, they fear that the opponent will take over the buffer state gain a strategic advantage and there is the inability to trust each other. Buffer state survival may be more likely with the presence of more powerful actors or if both neighbors face similar serious constraints over resources, but this is rare. US has imposed such constraints with its global norm against conquest--an international standard that has largely prevented the violent takeover of states since 1945. Terra Nullius land beginning to no one, term used at the age of imperialism during the 19 th century, rush by major powers to gain territory. Powers used a legal definition of terra nullius even through people were inhibiting land to argue it is not recognized as sovereign and we can seize the territory because it was unclaimed land.
Week 3: WWI, WWII and the Cold War Period leading to WWI -Late 1800s and turn of the century was a period of unprecedented prosperity, industrial development, high levels of trade, and colonial conquest for the main European powers. Period is referred to as first era of globalization -In 1910, Norman Angell wrote The Great Illusion, in which he argued that war between modern powers was unthinkable, addressing the rising tensions between UK and Germany, saying war would not happen because it would dismantle everything they d built, too much at stake, hence ww1 was a tragedy. Causes of WWI 1914-1918 1. Rising and declining powers created anxiety and imbalances. -Germany was ascendant, created tensions with France UK US 2. Nationalism was a strong force at this time, UK etc was very patriotic, and there were nationalist movements within countries easily stirred to war. Serb nationalist, Gavrilo Princip, shot the heir to the Austrian throne. (Balkan wars) 3. Alliances has become sticky and states could be drawn into unwanted conflicts. Germany had given Austria their support, France backed Russia, UK backed France 4.WWI was a tragedy, significant casualties, decline in wealth, production fell, birth deficit in major states, especially in Russia (as it led to the revolution) End of WWI- Treaty of Versailles 1.Considerations ( victors, Britain, France, Italy & US) to set up postwar policies -US only got into the war at the end, and had industrial strength, so Wilson was very idealistic and had a lot of control 2.The most immediate breakdown of regimes across Europe, including emergence of Russia as alternative revolutionary regime 3.Need to control Germany (esp by France, so Clemenceu was determined to get territories from Germany and constrain it) war guilt clause: Germany was assigned blame for conflict, taking of territories, exclusion from treaty, war reparations paying money to France, enraged the German nation as it didn t lose the war, rise of fascism 4. Map of Europe/ Middle East redrawn with collapse of Russian, Austrian, Ottoman 5. Victors sought to make another Great War impossible (League of Nations) Inter war years 1. 1929 US Stock Market crash, value of world trade dropped, US was hardest hit suffering drop in industrialism 2. Great Depression 3.Economic nationalism: UK sets up British pound 4. US retreats back into isolationism: Act to raise taxes on foreign imported goods, resulted in retaliation by other states until there was little trading/barriers 5.States that were concerned about their self-sufficiency now wanted to expand to gain resources -Japan starts to assert itself in Asia in Manchuria resources then China, Japan s Greater East Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere: didn t want to be at mercy of other powers who would cut of it s oil and resources -Germany starts to rearm then overtly Hitler/ Nazi s seizing power WWII; Russia and China hard hit, surrender of Japan and Germany
The Cold War 1945-1991 End of WWII: -the war had been won by a coalition whose principal members (USSR, the US, Britain) were at ideological and geographical war with one other already - the coalition had been both a mean to defeat the Axis powers, but also a way for the victors to gain a position for themselves for maximum influence in the postwar world -growing sense of insecurity at the highest levels of UK US and the USSR due to the efforts of each wartime ally in ensuring their own security -the Cold War occurred as they failed trying reconcile divergent political objectives as they pursued a common military task -De Tocqueville Hypothesis #23: Russia and America are geographically destined to dominate the world. Each state was expanding laterally across the pacific; each would have access to the two great oceans of the world and their resources so they would be able to dominate. Western European members would not be able to do this because they were too small; geography has a determinative role in affair The Three worlds of the Cold War -states aligned with US 1 st world, states aligned with SU 2 nd world -non aligned states 3 rd world (generated the term third world countries even though some states were not poor, actually some countries were allied eg Sweden was not aligned but still developed, but post cold war the 3 rd world refers to developing nations ) USSR at the end of WWII: shattered state, fortunate to have survived -Iron Curtain, the political, military, and ideological barrier erected by the Soviet Union after World War II to seal off itself and its dependent eastern and central European allies from open contact with the West and other noncommunist areas. -Stalin redesigned Russia to fit a Marxist-Leninist ideology -became a heavily industrialized nation with no liberty, authoritarian society -Stalin s goals were security for himself, his regime, his country and his ideology -Stalin believed that his losses during the war and the use of the Red Army entitled the soviet union to massive post-war gains but no power to secure this unilaterally. Crisis of Capitalism: -WWI had been largely a war between capitalists, allowing the world s first communist state to emerge -Capitalists were more worried about saving themselves than the global economy or the postwar settlement -Stalin believed that the economic crisis was inevitable after WWII, capitalist US and Britain would be at war with each other, ensure eventual Soviet domination of Europe US at the end of WWII: -emerged from the war with a thriving economy -change of ideology: US could not be a model for the world whilst it attempted to remain apart from the world -Roosevelt and Churchill envisaged a postwar settlement that would balance power whilst embracing principles, ensuring cooperation between great powers -encourage the maximum political self-determination and economic integration -as a victor, Roosevelt wanted to integrate Russia into the postwar order, he believed that security rather than ideology was SU s aim