Veidlapa Nr. M-3 (8)

Study Course Description

International Organisations

Main Study Course Information

Course Code

SZF_195

Branch of Science

Political science

ECTS

3.00

Target Audience

Business Management; Communication Science; Information and Communication Science; Law; Management Science; Political Science; Social Anthropology

LQF

Level 7

Study Type And Form

Full-Time

Study Course Implementer

Course Supervisor

Gunda Reire

Structure Unit Manager

Ieva Puzo

Structural Unit

Faculty of Social Sciences

Contacts

Dzirciema street 16, Rīga, szf@rsu.lv

About Study Course

Objective

The aim of the study course is to expand knowledge of the role and challenges of international organisations in today’s international environment. Let us focus on how international organisations institutionalise cooperation at international level, including their creation, internal dynamics and complex relations with countries on a variety of issues. The course will address the activities of various international organisations in various fields: collective security, trade, finance, democracy promotion and human rights, regional integration, etc. The UN, WTO, IMF, OSCE and other organisations will be covered. Through the prism of international organisations, let us analyse the values, interests and institutional mechanisms of international actors and apply these lessons to understand deeper international cooperation and conflict in general.

Preliminary Knowledge

a masterful knowledge of the theories and methods of international relations, as well as a basic knowledge of history from the period after World War II.

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge

1.The study course will expand knowledge and provide a general and comparative analysis of international organisations, their role and challenges in today’s international environment.

2.The course will provide students with knowledge of the theoretical and empirical aspects of international organisations’ activities in international policy, including their impact on international cooperation practices and conflict, maintaining international peace and security, international economic relations, etc.

Skills

1.The study course, based on case analysis of various international organisations, will build students’ skills to apply theoretical knowledge of international organisations by analysing their practical functioning.

Competences

1.The aim of the study course is to train the competence of students to a level in order to be able to freely analyse the role of international organisations in the international system, to evaluate the implementation of their functions, as well as to assess the impact of decisions taken by international organisations on international relations in the short and long term.

Assessment

Individual work

Title	% from total grade	Grade
1. Report	20.00% from total grade	10 points

Examination

Title	% from total grade	Grade
1. Presentation of the report	20.00% from total grade	10 points
2. Exam	20.00% from total grade	10 points
3. Attendance	10.00% from total grade	10 points
4. Activity and fitness during classes	30.00% from total grade	10 points

Study Course Theme Plan

FULL-TIME

Part 1

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Who is the international body? Origin and classification. What is and is not an international organisation? Classification and functions of organisations Union of peoples and origins of international organisations

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

United Nations - structure and role. The emergence, statutes and operational principles of the UN. The UN as a central mechanism for global governance. Security Council, General Assembly and UN reforms.

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

UN missions: Peace, Security and Development. UN peacekeeping operations (Blue Helmets, L5 countries). UN sustainable Development goals: Global progress and challenges.

Class/Seminar

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Seminar I – examples and failures of the UN. Discussion of Rwanda genocide as an example of UN incapacitation Discussion of literature. Presentation of reports on UN missions.

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Global Economic institutions: IMF and World Bank. Bretton Woods institutions: origins, functions and criticism. IMF crisis Management - example: Latvia and 2008 crisis.

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

World Trade Organisation — Development and challenges. Creation and functions of the WTO. Dispute settlement mechanism. Reflections on the future of the WTO.

Class/Seminar

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Seminar II – IMF and WTO practice. Discussions on Latvia’s experience with IMF and WTO dispute settlement cases. Literature analysis and presentations.

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Security and political cooperation organisations: NATO and the OSCE. NATO’s role in the security of the 21st century, challenges from China. OSCE as a crisis management and surveillance tool (Ukrainian example).

Class/Seminar

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Seminar III – NATO, OSCE and Transatlantic Security. Discussion of presentation and literature on: NATO strategy; The OSCE response in Ukraine.

Lecture

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

The role of human rights protection and non-governmental organisations. Objectives and achievements of the Council of Europe. International NGOs: opportunities, funding, impact risks. Russian influence in international organizations.

Class/Seminar

Modality	Location	Contact hours
On site	Study room	2

Topics

Seminar IV – Human rights, NGOs and future perspectives. Presentations on the Council of Europe, NGO challenges, Russian influence. Discussion: opportunities and constraints for international organisations in the 21st century. Conclusion of the course

Total ECTS (Creditpoints):

3.00

Contact hours:

22 Academic Hours

Final Examination:

Exam

Bibliography

Required Reading

Azerbaijan: Government Repression Tarnishes Chairmanship Council of Europe's Leadership Should Take Action. Human Rights Watch, 2014. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

- Barnett M., Finnemore M. The Politics, Power, and Pathologies of International Organizations. International Organization 53(4), 1999. pp. 699-732. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

- Ben-Ari, R. International Nongovernmental Organizations: “Global Conscience” or Powerful Political.Suitable for English stream

- Casier, T. A Classic Dilemma: Russia's Threat to Withdraw from the Council of Europe. Heinrich Böll Stiftung European Union, 2018.Suitable for English stream

- Copelovitch M. Master or Servant? Common Agency and the Political Economy of IMF Lending. International Studies Quarterly 54(1), 2010, pp. 49-77. (akceptējams izdevums)

- Donno D. Who is Punished? Regional Intergovernmental Organizations and the Enforcement of Democratic Norms. International Organization 64(4), 2010, pp. 593-625. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

- Hyde S. Catch Us if You Can: Election Monitoring and International Norm Diffusion. American Journal of Political Science 55(2), 2011, pp. 356-369. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

- Kahn R., Tananbaum S. The IMF and the Next Global Crisis. Global Economics Monthly March 2016.Suitable for English stream

- Karns M., Mingst K., Stiles K. International Organizations: The Politics and Processes of Global Governance. Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2015, pp. 1-40.Suitable for English stream

10.

- Kelley J. D-Minus Elections: The Politics and Norms of International Election Observation. International Organization 63(4), 2009, pp. 765-787. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

11.

- Komisar L. Interview with Joseph Stiglitz. 2011. Global Policy Forum (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

12.

- NATO at 70 - The bedrock of European and transatlantic security. Speech by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the Körber Global Leaders Dialogue, Berlin, 2019.Suitable for English stream

13.

- Pallas C. L., Urpelainen J. NGO monitoring and the legitimacy of international cooperation: A strategic analysis. Review of International Organizations 7(1), 2012, pp. 1âA¸S32. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

14.

- Pelc K. Seeking Escape: the Use of Escape Clauses in International Trade Agreements. International Studies Quarterly 53(2), 2009, pp. 349-368. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

15.

- Schroeder W. NATO at seventy: Filling NATO’s critical defense-capability gaps. Atlantic Council, 2019.Suitable for English stream

16.

- Schwab S. C. After Doha. Foreign Affairs, May/June 2011. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

17.

- Stone R. The Scope of IMF Conditionality. International Organization 62(4), 2008, pp. 489- 620. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

18.

- The United Nations System – Organizational Chart.Suitable for English stream

19.

- Tomz M., Goldstein J. L., Rivers D. Do We Really Know That the WTO Increases Trade? Comment. American Economic Review 97(5), 2007, pp.2005-2018. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

20.

- Werker E., Ahmed F. What Do Non-Governmental Organizations Do? 2007. (akceptējams izdevums)Suitable for English stream

International Organisations

Main Study Course Information

Study Course Implementer

About Study Course

Objective

Preliminary Knowledge

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge

Skills

Competences

Assessment

Individual work

Examination

Study Course Theme Plan

Lecture

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Class/Seminar

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Class/Seminar

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Class/Seminar

Topics

Lecture

Topics

Class/Seminar

Topics

Bibliography

Required Reading