İSTANBUL BİLGİ UNIVERSITY

IR 305 WORLD POLITICS I

Fall 2021

Instructor: Ozan Kuyumcuoğlu (E5-305) ozan.kuyumcuoglu@bilgi.edu.tr

Office Hours: Tuesdays: 10.00-11.00; Wednesdays: 10.00-11.00.
Teaching Assistant: Nagihan Söylemez (E5-104) nagihan.soylemez@bilgi.edu.tr
Office Hours: Tuesdays: 14.00-15.00
COURSE DESCRIPTION
IR 305 World Politics I is the first of a two-course world politics program designed to familiarize
the students with contemporary issues that occupy the agenda of international relations in the Post-
Cold War era. The first part (IR 305) will cover the world-political developments from the end of
Cold War to World Financial Crisis in 2008. The second part (IR 306) will cover the period from
World Financial Crisis in 2008 up to day. Whereas the first part (IR 305) is focusing on
globalization and rise of liberal internationalism, the second part (IR 306) will elaborate the decline
of liberal international order after 2008.

LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of this course, the students should be able to:
 Possess factual and historical knowledge on the events of the Post-Cold War and major
turning points in World Politics like 9/11 attacks (1990s and early 2000s),
 Critically analyse the trends of transition and transformation in the post-communist
countries,
 Comprehend the changes and continuities in trans-Atlantic relations after the Cold War,
 Evaluate how the rise of liberal internationalism affected political and social dynamics of
different regions,
 Have an ability to discuss the major reasons for reactions against liberal international order
in late 1990s and early 2000s.

GRADING
The grading of this course will take place over the following:
I. Coursework
 50% Weekly Assessments: Weekly activities consisting of:
i) 2 in-class exams (10 points each) 20%
ii) 2 question and answer (Q&A) sessions (5 points each) 10%
iii) 2 Metaquiz tests (2 points each) 4%
iv) 1 Discussion Board [Forum] entry (8 Points) 8%
v) 1 Wiki page entry (8 Points) 8%
All weekly assessments are online through the Bilgi Learn page of your course.
 25% Midterm: Centrally planned midterm exam (See academic calendar). The midterm
covers all subjects from week I up to midterm week.
II. Final Exam
 25% Final Exam: Centrally planned for the final exam period (See academic calendar).
The final exam covers the entire semester.

Letter Grade Conversion Table

F 0-34 D 35-39 D+ 40-44 C- 45-49 C 50-56 C+ 57-63 B- 64-72

B 73-79 B+ 80-86 A- 87-93 A 94-100

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Important Notice!
 You have to take the final or remedial final exam in order to pass the course, even if
you have collected 35 points and above of your total grade from coursework exams!!!

ACCESS TO REQUIRED READINGS AND DOCUMENTARIES

The required material of this course consists of a host of journal articles, book chapters and
documentaries as listed in the Weekly Schedule below. This material is electronically available on
the Bilgi Learn page of the course.

WEEKLY SCHEDULE
This section outlines the content, date, time and venue of our weekly activities, and the readings
you are required to cover during the week. It is important that you check the content of each week
from this syllabus in advance.

Week I Introduction and First Lecture

The rules and regulations, content of the course, grading methods and a demonstration of how to
access and utilize the Bilgi Learn System will be explained. The first lecture will be introducing the
concepts of politics in general, and its meaning within the term “world politics” in particular.

WEEK II: “End of Socialism” and Transformation of the International System

 Eric Hobsbawm, Age of Extremes: The Short Twentieth Century (1914-1991), London,
Abacus, 1995, pp. 461-500.
 Michael Mandelbaum, “Coup de Grace: End of Soviet Union”, Foreign Affairs, 1991/1992,
vol 71 Issue 1.
 Jeremi Suri, “Explaining the End of the Cold War: A New Historical Consensus?”, Journal
of Cold War Studies, vol. 4, no. 4, 2002, pp. 60-92.

Week III: Victors of a Long War: “The New World Order”

 G. H. W. Bush “Possibility of a New World Order”, George Bush Presidential Library

and Museum Archive, https://bush41library.tamu.edu/archives/public-papers/2869
 Joseph S. Nye “What New World Order”, Foreign Affairs, spring 1992 Vol. 71 No. 2 pp.
84-96.
 Lawrence Friedman “Order and Disorder in the New World”, Foreign Affairs, Vol. 71, No.
1, 1991/1992  pp. 20-37.

ONLINE ASSIGNMENT 1: Complete the online metaquiz: “The New World Order”. You
will get 2 Points of your total grade over 100 from this assignment.

Week IV: Central and Eastern Europe in Transition

 Vaclav Havel “A Call for Sacrifice”, Foreign Affairs, Mar/Apr 94, Vol. 73 Issue 2, pp. 2-7.
 Nigel M. Healey, “Economic Transformation in Central and Eastern Europe and
Commonwealth of Independent States”, Contemporary Review, May 1996, vol. 268 Issue
1564.

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Week V: Transformation of Russia and the Former Soviet Republics

 Yegor Gaidar, “The IMF and Russia”, American Economic Association (AEA) Papers and
Proceedings, 2001. http://www.iep.ru/files/persona/gaidar/IMF.pdf
 Martha Brill Olcott “Central Asia’s Catapult to Independence” Foreign Affairs, Summer
1992 Vol. 71 Issue 3 pp. 108-130.
 Alexander J. Motyl, “Soviet Legacies, Post-Soviet Transformations”, Freedom Review,
Jan/Feb. 1997, vol. 28 Issue 1.

ONLINE ASSIGNMENT 2: Answer the online metaquiz: Post Communist Transition: CEE
vs Soviet Union. You will get 2 points of your total grade over 100 from this assignment.

QUIZ 1

Week VI: Dissolution of Yugoslavia and Western Intervention in Bosnia and Kosovo

 David N. Gibbs, Chapter 3 “Origins of the Yugoslav Conflict” and Chapter 4 “Germany
Drops a Match” in First Do No Harm: Humanitarian Intervention and the Destruction
of Yugoslavia, (Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press. 2009), pp. 45-105.
 David N. Gibbs, Chapter 6: “Only the Weak Rely on Diplomacy: the Clinton Administration
Faces Bosnia”; Chapter 7 “Kosovo and the Reaffirmation of American Power” in First Do
No Harm: Humanitarian Intervention and the Destruction of Yugoslavia, (Nashville:
Vanderbilt University Press. 2009), pp. 141-204.
 Ivo H. Daalder and Michael B. G. Froman “Dayton’s Incomplete Peace”, Foreign Affairs,
Vol. 78, No. 6 (Nov. - Dec., 1999), pp. 106-113.

ONLINE ASSIGNMENT 3: Contribute to the forum “Reasons of Yugoslav Dissolution.” You

will get 4 points for your contribution, and 4 points for your comments.

Week VII: Humanitarian Interventions in Africa

 Chester A. Crocker “The Lessons of Somalia”, Foreign Affairs, 74/3, 1995.

 Stephen D. Goose and Frank Smyth “Arming Genocide in Rwanda” Foreign Affairs, Sept.
1 1994.

Q&A 1

Week VIII: MIDTERM WEEK

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Week IX: “The New World Order and the Middle East”

 William Cleveland, Martin Bunton, A History of the Middle East, 4th ed. Philadelphia,
Westview Press, 2009, pp. 499-556.
 Ron Pundak, “From Oslo to Taba: What Went Wrong”, Survival, 43:3, 2001.
 Nikkie R. Keddie, “The End of the Cold War and the Middle East”, Diplomatic History,
vol. 16, no. 25, 1992, pp. 95-103.
 Fred Halliday, “The Gulf War 199-1991 and the Study of International Relations”, Review
of International Studies, 20 (2), 1994, pp. 109-130.
 S. Yaqub Ibrahimi, “Theory of the Rise of Al Qaida”, Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism
and Political Aggression, 10:2, 2018, pp. 138-157.

ONLINE ASSIGNMENT 4: Contribute to the Wiki: The Middle East. You are required to
enter one item and edit two of your classmates on the Middle East. You will get 8 points of your
total grade for your contribution to this wikipage.

Week X: Latin America in the 1990’s: The Neo-liberal Turn

 Emir Saader, “The Weakest Link? Neoliberalism in Latin America”, New Left Review,
July-August 2008.
 Kenneth M. Roberts “The Politics of Inequality and Redistribution in Latin America’s Post-
Adjustment”, UNU-WIDER Working Paper No 2012/08.

Week XI: 9/11 Attacks and “The War on Terror”

 Watch the documentary: Michael Moore, Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004)

 Bob Woodward, Plan of Attack, Pocket Books, 2004, ch. 1&2 pp. 9-30.
 Patricia L. Dunmire, “‘9/11 Changed Everything’: An Intertextual Analysis of the Bush
Doctrine”, Discourse and Society, vol. 20, no.2, 2009, pp. 195-222.

QUIZ 2

Week XII: The Occupation of Afghanistan

 Dov S. Zakheim, “How we failed in Afghanistan and how we can make it better”, FPRI E-
Notes, October 2011.
 Peter Tomsen “The Good War? What went wrong in Afghanistan and how to make it right”
Foreign Affairs, Dec. 2014.

Week XIII: The Invasion of Iraq

 Andrew F. Krepinevich “How to Win in Iraq”, Foreign Affairs, September/October 2005.

 James D. Fearon, “Iraq’s civil War”, Foreign Affairs, March/April2007.

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Week XIV: Liberal Internationalism in Eastern Europe: From Colour Revolutions to
Eastward Enlargement of the European Union

 Mark R. Thompson and Philipp Kuntz, “Stolen Elections: The Case of the Serbian October”,
Journal of Democracy, Vol 15/4, October 2004.
 Lucan Way, “The Real Causes of the Color Revolutions”, Journal of Democracy, Vol 19/3
July 2008.
 Darina Malova, Branislav Dolny, “The Eastern Enlargement of the European Union:
Challenges to Democracy?”, Human Affairs, 18, 2008, pp. 67-80.

Q&A 2