Syllabus
Please see the MS WORD version of the syllabus which is available among the files up-loaded for this course in the SIS system.
Annotation
The course covers the problematic of United Nations Peacekeeping Operations (UN PKOs), one of the hottest topics in international politics of the post-Cold War era. Peacekeeping operations have always placed high on the UN agenda and in the last decade, they have become the most visible of all UN activities. We will cover the following topics: definitions, taxonomies, history, principles and legal framework of UN PKOs, principal critiques of UN PKOs in the post-cold war era, research and analysis of the success of UN PKOs operations in resolving contemporary conflicts, current and future trends in UN PKOs, and non-United Nations peacekeeping operations (conducted by private military companies and/or regional organizations).
Please note that the course will be given in 6 seminars that will take place once every two weeks of the winter semester. The first seminar will take place on October 6, 2009.
Important note on course availability: This course is primarily intended for students enrolled in the Security Studies and/or International Relations Masters Degree Program(s), who will have preference in course enrollment. If too many students sign-up for this course, the instructor reserves the right to cancel the enrollment of any non-Security Studies/International Relations students for this course, even if they successfully register for it in the electronic registration system. (I hope I will not need to exercise this right!)
Why take this course?
United Nations peacekeeping is one of the hottest topics in contemporary international politics. Despite the fact that the word peacekeeping is not mentioned anywhere in the UN Charter, UN PKOs have traditionally placed high on the UN agenda. Over time, PKOs became one of the most visible of all UN activities and as such, they have also served as a yardstick with which the UN is judged by the people it is supposed to serve. As such, UN peacekeeping has also become a favorite object of scholarly research and analysis, especially in the post-cold war era.
You will hopefully be a better citizen if you understand more fully major problems of conflict prevention, management and resolution. Many of you will be leaders in your various fields and will assume positions of responsibility. The more you are aware and knowledgeable about resolving conflicts non-violently, the more you may be able to save some lives, reduce violence and destruction, and make this planet a more peaceful place to live.
It will help you professionally by teaching you to write, think, and speak more clearly and persuasively. Negotiation, bargaining, debate, writing and conflict resolution are part of any job and they are the heart of this course's subject matter and assignments.