This course deals with diplomatic efforts to end serious conflicts in Europe and beyond since the end of the Cold War or, as Richard Holbrooke put it, with the question of “how to end a war” in mind. In the first sessions of the seminar, we will look at international responses to the outbreak of violent conflict in former Yugoslavia, with a particular focus on the efforts that led to the Dayton Peace Accords for Bosnia in 1995, as well as on the NATO intervention in Kosovo in 1999, the subsequent negotiations about the status of Kosovo and the prospects for stability in the region. Afterwards, we will turn to the wars between Georgia and Russia and Ukraine and Russia. The latter has arguably developed into the biggest challenge to the European security architecture since the end of the Cold War. At the end of the course we will move beyond Europe’s borders to look at the Iran nuclear deal and other conflicts in the MENA region. In the final session, we will collect the lessons learned from these conflicts and discuss their implications for making wider Europe a more peaceful place.
This course is for 2nd year MIA and MPP students only.
Instructor
- Wolfgang Ischinger , Professor Emeritus of Security Policy and Diplomatic Practice | Founding Director, Centre for International Security