The use of force, or its threat, is ubiquitous in international politics. While practitioners and scholars focus on the threat of interstate war, in reality conflicts rarely reach the level of war. Force, thus, is used often in “peace time.” The seminar examines the way international relations' theory addresses policies short of war, particularly the security policies states use to promote their political and strategic objectives, to dissuade rivals from attacking, to manage crisis situations, and to promote peaceful resolution to interstate conflicts. Thus, the course looks in particular at deterrence theory and coercive diplomacy and combines theory and case studies to explore the workings of deterrence and compellence in international politics.
- Teacher: Barak Mendelsohn