Introduction
to International Relations by Karl
Jackson
December 2013 – January 2014
Overview
Events
of the last two years have brought Southeast Asian back into the spotlight of
international relations for the first time in twenty years. The American “pivot”
to Asia, the diplomatic and economic opening of Myanmar, disunity within ASEAN,
and the possibility of conflict over islets and shoals in the South China ( or
West Philippine) Sea have altered the status quo and raised questions about the
long-term intentions of the United States, China, and the Southeast Asian
nations. Why have all major actors taken stances in Southeast Asian that would
have been unimaginable just a few years ago?
All
of the data on international behavior are constantly in motion and students of
all ages remain frustrated by their inability to make sense of the
ever-expending array of events, actors, and interpretations. In Southeast Asia,
as elsewhere, international controversies and day-to-day policies ( not to
mention the changing statements of political leaders and political parties)
present an almost bewilderingly series of factors, any combination of which
might (or might not) account for a country or a regional organization’s
behaviors. The trick of the first-rate analyst (in a government, bank, or an
NGO) is to find a method for determining ‘Why Do Nations Do What They Do?’
This
course uses Asia as a laboratory for answering this question at multiple levels
of individual nation states, the regional organization (ASEAN) and in the
context of international political system as a whole. Hence, this course
stressed general analytic skills rather than just ‘facts’ about Southeast Asia.
The purpose is to impart a method that will retain value even after all of the
‘facts’ have changed and even if you find your eventual professional focus far
from Southeast Asia.
Course
Outline
Course
description
Alternative theories of international
relations. Can theories of the international system predict the foreign
policy behaviors of nations? What is the role of relative balances of power and
capabilities in predicting the actual behaviors of nations, small and large?
What is the role of perception and misperception in the behavior of nations?
What about the influence of the domestic politics in the formulation of foreign
policy? How important are individual leaders? Are the foreign policies of ASEAN
as a group or as separate nations merely an artifact of an international arena
dominated by large outside powers?
Realism, Liberal Internationalism, and
Constructivism
Events, Policies, and National interests
Actors: Individual Leaders; Elite and Mass Public
Opinion
Rationality Vs Irrationality (economic rationalism
Vs nationalist irrationality)
From
nation building to regionalist breakthrough and back to primacy of perceived
national interests.
1945-75: Nationalism and nation state building. Nationalism
in command. “Go to Hell with your aid!”
1975-1993: Cambodia: International conflict and the
triumph of regionalism and internationalism over nationalism.
1993-2012: Nation state primacy and the decline of
regionalism.
ASEAN and ARF morph into ASEAN+3 and the East Asian
Summit? TPP?
Islands of contention between ASEAN and China.
Domestic
sources of national interest in Indonesia,
Philippines, Thailand, Myanmar, Vietnam, Singapore and Malaysia.
How leaders, elites, and mass movements define
national interests and produce foreign policy outcomes. How can small,
relatively powerless nations survive and/or assert themselves in the
international arena?
The
role of the external powers.
US: Regional Pivot. New assertiveness or declining
hegemon?
China: Emerging Mega state: Status quo or
revisionist?
Japan Paradox: Constant power but declining status.
Australia: Small state poised between its European
past and an Asian future.
India: Second mega nation emerging?
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