THE FLETCHER SCHOOL OF LAW AND DIPLOMACY

Tufts University

Spring 2010

DHP D202

SEMINAR ON
ETHICAL REASONING IN
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

ALAN M. WACHMAN STAFF ASSISTANT:

Cabot 501 Karin McMaster
tel: 7-5454 Cabot 510
e-mail: Alan.Wachman@Tufts.edu tel: 7-2003

Office Hours: Appointment sheets are posted on the door of my office each
week.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

The aim of this course is to consider the state as an ethical actor in international
relations. The course is not designed to be comprehensive, but suggestive. It is
intended to provoke thought and discussion among a community of learners who
may, themselves, arrive in the classroom informed by very different ethical
traditions and depart equally divided. As an introduction, the course cannot
possibly address every worthy dimension of ethics in international relations, so
students will be encouraged, through their own research papers, to undertake
consideration of ethical dilemmas that may not be represented on the syllabus
but which may be of particular concern.

The course begins with a consideration of key, related concepts: ethics and
morality. It reviews discourses from classical political theory and philosophy
drawn from different traditions about the role(s) of the state, as well as
contemporary treatises concerning ethics in international relations.

Working from several texts, students will be asked to study both conceptual
matters as well as review cases in which states were confronted with policy
dilemmas that reflected competing interests and ethical evaluations. Cases are
selected from various times and locations to encourage students to appreciate
better the universality of the difficulties faced by political leaderships that must
reconcile ethical and other interests. Readings are intended to challenge students
to see the merit in competing perspectives and to wrestle, themselves, with how
to establish a justifiable course of action.

The final portion of the semester will enable students to present findings based
on their own research about cases in which an ethical dilemma arose in
international relations. Meetings beyond the scheduled class hours may have to
be scheduled to allow all students to present their research.

COURSE OBJECTIVES

By the end of the semester, students should have a broad overview of conceptual
literature pertaining to ethics in international relations—derived from an array of
cultural sources—and, more importantly, to have a tentative conclusion about the
possibility and limits of the state’s inclinations to act in an ethical manner. This
is not intended as a “how to” course or a program that imparts a particular code
of ethical behavior. Nevertheless, students should expect to cultivate the capacity
to identify ethical dilemmas and to think critically about the implications of
policy options involving difficult ethical choices.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS

 Discussion: Students may be called on to offer brief, in-class overviews of

assigned readings or responses to assigned questions.

 Short Essays: Students will be asked to write several (no more than three)
short analytical essays about cases presented in the readings. Essays are to
be no more than 1,000 words each (approximately three pages in length)
and must be completed prior to the class in which the case will be
discussed. Additional instructions will be given in due course.

 Research Paper: Students will be expected to identify an ethical dilemma

faced by some state (past or present), to analyze the ethical reasoning
employed by the state leadership that devised a policy toward the issue in
question, and to comment on the ethical implications of the choices made
by the state. Additional instructions will be given in due course.

 Class Presentation: Students will each be expected to present their

research findings to the class. Additional instructions will be given in due
course.

READINGS

Reading Assignments:
Students will be expected to read the assigned selections each week prior to the
class meeting. Readings followed by <Bb> are available on the Blackboard
website for this course: http://blackboard.tufts.edu.
Available for purchase at the University Book Store:
The following books, from which substantial portions have been assigned, should
be available for purchase at the campus bookstore by early February. Assigned
readings from these texts are on the Blackboard website only through the third
class session:

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in

Global Politics, THIRD edition. Lanham, MD: Rowman and Littlefield,
2008.
 Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel, eds., Traditions of International Ethics,
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1992.
 Joel H. Rosenthal, Ethics and International Affairs: A Reader, Second
Edition. Washington: Carnegie Council on Ethics and International
Affairs, 1999.
 Andrew Valls, ed., Ethics in International Affairs. Lanham, Boulder, New
York, Oxford: Rowman and Littlefield, 2000.

AUDITORS

Auditors are welcome and may feel free to participate in class discussions. To
have the course listed on a transcript as a certified audit, auditors are expected to
attend regularly, but are not expected to submit any work.

ACTIVE LEARNING

This is not a lecture course. So, students are expected to read, think about, and
share their reactions to the texts in guided, classroom discussion. Individuals
may be called on to offer brief, in-class overviews of assigned
readings. To prepare, students are invited to consider the following guide to
reading and note-taking:

1. Readings are short, but dense. They require thought. So, be prepared to
read certain passages more than once to ensure you understand the
author’s point(s).
2. As you take notes, be sure to record what you view as the main point of the
chapter or article. Be prepared to summarize the author’s argument in a
few sentences.
3. Take note of the main sources of information or ideas that contribute to
the author’s central argument. Be prepared to summarize these points in
a sentence or two.
4. Take note of the lesson(s) the author aims to convey by reference to
illustrations or examples from the “real world.”
5. As you read, be sure to note the questions or reactions you have to the
author’s “real world” illustrations.
6. Do you agree or differ from the author about the meaning of the event or
dilemma? Do other “real world” examples seem more relevant or
revealing to you?
 COURSE SCHEDULE1

[1] Considering Concepts: Ethics and Morality

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in

Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 1, “Morality and Foreign Policy,”
pp. 7–19.
 Joel Rosenthal, “What Constitutes an Ethical Approach to International
Affairs?” Lecture 1, January 10, 2001, The Fletcher School of Law and
Diplomacy, <Bb>
 Stanley Hoffmann, “The Political Ethics of International Relations,” in
Ethics and International Affairs: A Reader, Second Edition. Joel H.
Rosenthal, ed. Washington: Carnegie Council on Ethics and International
Affairs, 1999, 28–49.
 Frances V. Harbour, “Basic Moral Values: A Shared Core,” in Rosenthal,
ed. Ethics and International Affairs, 103–123.
 Terry Nardin, “Ethical Traditions in International Affairs,” in Traditions of
International Ethics, Terry Nardin and David R. Mapel, eds. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press, 1992, 1–21.

[2] Realism vs. Idealism? (I)

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in

Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 3, “The Role of Ethical
Traditions,” pp. 43-63.
 George F. Kennan, “Morality and Foreign Policy” Foreign Affairs (Winter
1985/1986) <Bb>
 Joel H. Rosenthal, “What the Sages Say” Lecture 2, The Fletcher School of
Law and Diplomacy, February 10, 2001, <Bb>
 Steven Forde, “Classical Realism,” in Nardin and Mapel, Traditions of
International Ethics, 62–84.
 Jack Donnelly, “Twentieth-Century Realism,” in Nardin and Mapel,
Traditions of International Ethics, 85–111.
 David A. Welch, “Morality and ‘the National Interest’,” in Ethics in
International Affairs, Andrew Valls, ed. Lanham, Boulder, New York,
Oxford: Rowman and Littlefield, 2000, 3–12.

Case: The Fate of Melos

1Please note: Some alteration of the topics and readings may be introduced once
the size and composition of the class is settled.
  Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War, Richard Crawley, tr.
Provided by The Internet Classics Archive, The Fifth Book, pp. 259-266.
http://classics.mit.edu//Thucydides/pelopwar.html. <Bb>

[3] Realism vs. Idealism? (II)

 Sissela Bok, “Early Advocates of Lasting World Peace: Utopians or

Realists?” in Rosenthal, ed. Ethics and International Affairs, 124-147.
 Cho-yun Hsu, “Applying Confucian Ethics to International Relations,” in
Rosenthal, ed. Ethics and International Affairs, 148–169.
 Thomas Donaldson, “Kant’s Global Rationalism,” in Nardin and Mapel,
eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 136–157.
 Anthony Ellis, “Utilitarianism and International Ethics,” in Nardin and
Mapel, eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 158–179.
 Michael Joseph Smith, “Liberalism and International Reform,” in Nardin
and Mapel, eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 201–224.
 Chris Brown, “Marxism and International Ethics,” in Nardin and Mapel,
eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 225–249.
 Michael G. Cartwright, “Biblical Argument in International Ethics,” in
Nardin and Mapel, eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 270–296.

[4] Ethics as a Choice

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in

Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 2, “Strategies of Ethical Decision
Making,” pp. 27–42.
 Robert H. Jackson, “The Situational Ethics of Statecraft,” in Ethics and
Statecraft: The Moral Dimension of International Affairs, Cathal J.
Nolan, ed. Westport: Praeger, 2004, pp. 17–31.
 Arnold Wolfers, “Statesmanship and Moral Choice,” World Politics, Vol. 1,
No. 2 (January 1949), pp. 175-195, <Bb>

Case 1: Situational Ethics at War

 Stephen A. Garret, “Political Leadership and ‘Dirty Hands’: Winston

Churchill and the City Bombing of Germany,” in Ethics and Statecraft:
The Moral Dimension of International Affairs, Nolan, ed., pp. 59–72.

Case 2: Moral Choice at War—Mytilene Debate

 Thucydides, The History of the Peloponnesian War, Richard Crawley, tr.

Provided by The Internet Classics Archive, The Book, pp. .
http://classics.mit.edu//Thucydides/pelopwar.html. <Bb>
[5] Just War and Justice in War

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases

in Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 6, “The Ethics of War,” pp.
109–129.
 Nicholas Fotion, “Reactions to War: Pacifism, Realism, and Just War
Theory,” in Valls, ed. Ethics in International Affairs, 15–32.
 Anthony J. Coates, “Just War in the Persian Gulf?” in Valls, ed. Ethics
in International Affairs, 33–47.
 Frances V. Harbour, “The Just War Tradition and the Use of Non-
lethal Chemical Weapons during the Vietnam War,” in Valls, ed. Ethics
in International Affairs, 49–61.
 David Armstrong, “No End of a Lesson: Vietnam and the Nature of
Moral Choice in Foreign Policy,” in Ethics and Statecraft: The Moral
Dimension of International Affairs, Cathal J. Nolan, ed., pp. 75–90.
 Bassam Tibi, “War and Peace in Islam,” in Islamic Political Ethics:
Civil Society, Pluralism, and Conflict, Sohail H. Hashmi, ed.
Princeton: Princteon University Press, 2002, pp. 175-189.
 Daniel A. Bell, “Just War and Confucianism: Implications for the
Contemporary World,” in Confucian Political Ethics, Daniel A. Bell, ed.
Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2008, pp. 226–245

See also:
 Michael Walzer, Just and Unjust Wars: A Moral Argument With
Historical Illustrations, (2006), pages to be determined.
 Michael Walzer, Arguing About War. New Haven: Yale University
Press, 2006, pages to be determined.

[6] Universalism or Relativism? Human Rights and “Asian Values”

 R.J. Vincent, “The Idea of Rights in International Ethics,” in Nardin and

Mapel, eds. Traditions of International Ethics, 250–269.
 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in
Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 5, “The Ethics of International
Human Rights,” pp. 87–108.
 Amartya Sen, “Human Rights and Asian Values,” in Rosenthal, ed. Ethics
and International Affairs, pp. 170-193.
 Mahathir Mohamad, Voice of Asia, Tokyo: Kodansha, 1995, pages to be
assigned
 Kishore Mahbubani, “An Asian Perspective on Human Rights and
Freedom of the Press,” Text of lecture at Seminar on “Asian and American
 Perspectives on Capitalism and Democracy,” 28-30 January 1993. You
may also wish to watch a very brief video clip of Mahbubani as he
describes Asian Values, at: http://bigthink.com/ideas/2052
 Kausikan, Bilahari. “The ‘Asian Values’ Debate: A View from Singapore,”
in Diamond, Larry and Marc F. Plattner, eds. Democracy in East Asia.
Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998, 17-26.
 Chan, Joseph. “Asian Values and Human Rights: An Alternative View,” in
Diamond and Plattner, eds. Democracy in East Asia, 28-40.
 Fukuyama, Francis. “The Illusions of ‘Asian Exceptionalism’,” in Diamond
and Plattner, eds. Democracy in East Asia, 224-227.
 Scalpino, Robert A. “A Tale of Three Systems,” in Diamond and Plattner,
eds. Democracy in East Asia, 228-233.

[7] Terrorism, Counterterrorism, and Torture

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases in

Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 7, “The Ethics of Military
Operations Other than War,” pp. 131–150.
 Andrew Valls, “Can Terrorism Be Justified?” in Valls, ed. Ethics in
International Affairs, 65–80.
 David A. George, “The Ethics of IRA Terrorism,” in Valls, ed. Ethics in
International Affairs, 81–98.
 Neve Gordon and Geroge A. Lopez, “Terrorism in the Arab-Israeli
Conflict,” in Valls, ed. Ethics in International Affairs, 99–113.
 Osama bin Laden, “Full text: bin Laden's 'letter to America,'” Observer
Worldview, Sunday 24 November 2002,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2002/nov/24/theobserver/print
 Osama bin Laden, “Full Text of Osama bin Laden's Remarks on Videotape
(Oct. 29, 2004),” http://www.cesnur.org/2004/osama_video.htm
 Additional readings to be assigned.

[8] Humanitarian Impulse (I): Sovereignty or Intervention?

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases

in Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapter 8, “The Ethics of
Intervention,” pp. 151–174.
 Joel H. Rosenthal, “Dilemmas of Humanitarian and Peace Operations
(Lecture 3), March 10, 2001, The Fletcher School of Law and
Diplomacy, <Bb>
 Michael J. Smith, “Humanitarian Intervention: An Overview of the
Ethical Issues,” in Rosenthal, ed., Ethics and International Affairs,
271–295.
 Amir Pasic and Thomas G. Weiss, “The Politics of Rescue: Yugoslavia’s
Wars and the Humanitarian Impulse,” in Rosenthal, ed., Ethics and
International Affairs, 296–333.
  David R. Mapel, “When is it Right to Rescue? A Response to Pasic and
Weiss,” in Rosenthal, ed., Ethics and International Affairs, 348–355.
 Augustus Richard Norton, “Drawing the Line on Opprobrious
Violence,” in Rosenthal, ed., Ethics and International Affairs, 356–
369.
 Simon Caney, “Humanitarian Intervention and State Sovereignty,” in
Valls, ed., Ethics in International Affairs, 117–134.
 George Klay Kieh, “Humanitarian Intervention in Civil Wars in Africa,”
in Valls, ed., Ethics in International Affairs, 135–150.
 German and U.S. Intervention against Yugoslav Sovereignty,” in Valls,
ed., Ethics in International Affairs, 151-168.
 Kishore Mahbubani, “Pol Pot: The Paradox of Moral Correctness,”
Terrorism 16, 1993.

[9] Humanitarian Impulse (II): Conflicting Imperatives

Case 1:
 Joshua Mitnick, “Sudan’s ‘genocide’ lands at Israel’s door. Israelis ask
if they have a moral obligation to take in Sudan's refugees.” The
Christian Science Monitor
http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0602/p04s01-wome.html
 Peter Hirschberg, “MIDEAST: Holocaust Memories Hover Over
Sudanese Refugees.” http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=33628
 ISRAEL-SUDAN: Israeli NGOs strive to release jailed refugees
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=71175.
 Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time
of War. Geneva, 12 August 1949. Part III : Status and treatment of
protected persons #Section II : Aliens in the territory of a party to the
conflict. ARTICLE 44Database 'IHL - Treaties & Comments', View
'CONVART'. -- REFUGEES (1);
http://www.icrc.org/ihl.nsf/COM/380-600050?OpenDocument.

Case 2: To be assigned in due course.

[10] Covert Action

 Peter Kornbluh, The Pinochet File: A Declassified Dossier on Atrocity

and Accountability. New York: New Press, 2003. Introduction,
Chapters 1, 2.
 Stephan Kinzer, Overthrow: America’s Century of Regime Change
from Hawaii to Iraq. New York: Times Books, 2006, 170-194.
Introduction, Chapter 8.
 John Kenneth Knaus, Orphans of the Cold War: America and the
Tibetan Struggle for Survival. New York: Public Affairs, 1999,
chapters to be assigned.
[11] The Ethics of International Systems

 Mark R. Amstutz, International Ethics: Concepts, Theories, and Cases

in Global Politics, THIRD edition, chapters 10, 11, “Pursuing
International Justice,” and “The Ethics of Intervention,” pp. 195–240.
 Joel H. Rosenthal, “Justice and the World Economy (Lecture 5), The
Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, May 10, 2001. <Bb>
 Peter Jones, “Global Distributive Justice,” in Valls, ed., Ethics in
International Affairs, pp. 169–184.
 Gerard Elfstrom, “The Ethical Responsibilities of Multinational
Corporations: The Case of the North American Aluminum Companies
in Jamaica,” in Valls, ed., Ethics in International Affairs, pp. 185–200.
 Jeffrey Cason, “Whatever Happened to the New International
Economic Order?” in Valls, ed., Ethics in International Affairs, pp.
201–214.
 Additional readings to be assigned in due course.

[12] Student Presentations

[13] Student Presentations/Concluding Remarks

 additional time may have to be scheduled to allow all students to make

their presentations.