Special Topics in International Studies (390-0-1)

Topic

Fall of the USSR and Rise of Russia

Instructors

Ambassador Ian Kelly

Meeting Info

University Hall 318: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM

Overview of class

The Fall of the USSR and the Rise of Putin

This course will explore the roots and the drivers of Putin's policies. It will look at the factors leading to the USSR's disintegration and resulting ethnic conflicts, the security issues requiring responses from the U.S., and the decision-making processes in responding to these challenges.

We will also examine the fraught security environment of the post-Cold War world. We will discuss the West's efforts to anchor newly independent states in the EU and NATO and Putin's counterefforts to assert what he sees as Russia's right to a sphere of influence, using coercion to deny countries like Ukraine and Georgia their sovereign right to leave Moscow's orbit and join NATO and the EU. Closer to home, Putin has employed various direct and indirect efforts to undermine Western solidarity and confidence in the liberal democratic system.

As a final project, students will propose possible U.S. responses to a resurgent Russia.

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Historical Studies Foundational Discipline
Historical Studies Distro Area