Power and Alliances in World Politics

An introduction to and a general familiarity with power competition between states and the patterns of alliance politics. It explores the means and processes by which states form and maintain alliances. The course analyzes the dynamics of great power alliances and asymmetric alliances between smaller and weaker states and great powers. The first part of the course focuses on theoretical approaches to alliances. The second part of the course delves into several historical and contemporary alliances: the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Sino-American competition over allies and partners in the Asia-Pacific, and major multilateral and bilateral military alliances in Africa, the Middle East, East Asia, and Southeast Asia.

Fall, Spring