POS 404 OUTLINE

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ADEKUNLE AJASIN UNIVERSITY AKUNGBA AKOKO

DEPT OF POLITICAL SCIENCE AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

POS 404: THEORIES OF WAR AND STRATEGIES OF PEACE

Course description

War is a most constant phenomenon in the continuing evolution of politically organized human communities from the earliest times to the present. So also has the attempt to restore peace become an inevitable accompaniment of the phenomenon of war. This course examines these realities, seeking in the process an appreciation of the real nature and causes of war as explicated in extant theoretical postulations on the one hand, and the strategies of attaining peace on the other.

Expectations

To facilitate robust interaction on the topics in the class; a list or relevant texts and documents is provided by the Instructor. Every student is expected to search, read and understand the key arguments of the identified articles before coming to class. A good percentage of the overall scores go to constructive participation in class and every student is encouraged to take advantage of this. There shall be a mid-semester test, and class presentation of a Term Paper, focused on a particular war/related issue by each student. At the end of the day, a student’s grade will be determined by how well s/he has acquitted himself/herself on these issues.

Course Outline

1. The nature of War and Peace – Definition and concepts

2. Why do Nations go to War?

3. Theories of War

4. Types of War.

5. Rules/Ethics of War

6. History of war – A case study

7. Strategies of Peace

- Pax Romana

-Diplomacy

-Balance of power

-Multilateralism

-Collective security

-Peace- keeping/making/enforcemnet

- Arms race

- Disarmament

- Functionalism

-World Government

- Human Security issues in Africa

8. Global Terrorism

9. The UN and the War/Peace Question after September 11

10. Political Islam

11. Review

Recommended Texts

1. Carl Von Clausewitz (1982) On War, London: Penguin pp 101-122

2. J.G Stoessinger (2002) Why Nations go to War, New York: St Martin Press

3. N.O Mimiko (1991) “Beyond the Second Gulf War: Notes on the Limited Possibilities of Peace in the Middle East” Journal of Social Sciences, 2 Oct pp 14-21

4. N.O Mimiko (2000) “The Resurgence of Islamic Militancy and the Prospects for Peace and Security in Africa: Algeria and Egypt as case studies” Journal of Policy Initiatives, 3(2) pp. 46-63

5. Adebayo Adedeji (1996) “The UN and Africa in the next 50 years” MIMEO

6. Amadu Sesay (1999) ‘Between the Olive Branch and the AK-47: Paradoxes of recent Military Intervention in West Africa” ISSUP Bulletin: Pretoria

7. Lanre Olu-Adeyemi (2000) “Globalisation and Human Security in Africa” Journal of Policy Initiatives, 3(1) pp 13-38

8. J.G Ruggie (2000) Constructing the World Polity, London: Oxford pp 102-130

9. J.Chopra (1999) “Peace maintenance: The Evolution of International Political Authority” London: Routledge pp 1-18

10. David Adeyemo and Lanre Olu-Adeyemi (2010) “Amnesty in a vacuum:

 The unending insurgency in the Niger Delta of Nigeria” in Victor Ojakorotu and Lysias Dodd Gilbert (eds) Oil violence in Nigeria:Checkmating its resurgence in the Niger Delta, Berlin: Lambart  Academic Publishing

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