Bachelor
2022/2023
Introduction to Contemporary Geopolitics
Type:
Elective course (Asian and African Studies)
Area of studies:
Asian and African Studies
Delivered by:
School of Asian Studies
When:
4 year, 1 module
Mode of studies:
distance learning
Online hours:
20
Open to:
students of all HSE University campuses
Instructors:
Andrei Skriba
Language:
English
ECTS credits:
3
Contact hours:
6
Course Syllabus
Abstract
This Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) will offer the participants an introduction into contemporary geopolitics, starting from the origins of classical geopolitics and continuing the discussion with the deep analysis of the examined country-cases, including the US, Russia, and China. Combined with small tests, based on the video’s and recommended readings, the participants will be encouraged to dive into the complex theories and phenomena and get familiar with the concepts that are still very relevant in the contemporary world.
Learning Objectives
- The module will explain the nature of the newly emergent issues and their impact on the relationship between the major political actors, giving students a chance to look at the current political patterns and dynamics through the lens of geopolitical analysis.
- The module will provide an overview of historical and political circumstances, which laid the foundation of Russian geopolitics.
- The last module of the course will provide an overview of the previously studied concepts and theories, students with an opportunity to revise and draw together what they have covered in the course.
Expected Learning Outcomes
- apply the major geopolitical formulations covered over the previous weeks to their subsequent study of international relations
- closely examine both the historical and geopolitical context of the Cold War to define the role of geopolitics in the global political realm
- illuminate the principal difference between the traditional and contemporary approaches in geopolitical analysis
- look at the current political patterns and dynamics through the lens of geopolitical analysis
Course Contents
- The Birth of Geopolitics
- The Beginning of the Cold War Geopolitics
- World Politics After the Cold War Ended
- One More Thing about Geopolitics
- The Key Players in Contemporary Geopolitics
- History and Geography of the United States
- History and Geography of Russia
- History and Geography of China
- Geopolitics and its Value
Interim Assessment
- 2022/2023 1st module0.334 * tests 7, 8, 9 + 0.333 * tests 1, 2, 3 + 0.333 * tests 4, 5, 6
Bibliography
Recommended Core Bibliography
- Brzezinski, Z. (2007). The Grand Chessboard : American Primacy And Its Geostrategic Imperatives. Basic Books.
- Henry Kissinger. (2014). World Order. Penguin Books.
- Toal, G., Dalby, S., & Routledge, P. (1998). The Geopolitics Reader. Routledge.
Recommended Additional Bibliography
- Connectivity wars [Elektronische Ressource] : why migration, finance and trade are the geo-economic battlegrounds of the future / ed. by Mark Leonard. European Council on Foreign Relations. [With contributions by: Atif Ansar ...] . (2016).
- Fukuyama, F. (1986). Foreign Affairs, 64(4), 715. https://doi.org/10.2307/20042684
- Hoffman, F. G., & Kaplan, R. (2018). The Revenge of Geography: What the Map Tells Us about Coming Conflicts and the Battle against Fate.