International Community and International Relations
Course type
Study programme and level
Language
slovenščina
Lectures | Seminar | Tutorial | Druge oblike študija | Individual Work | ECTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
30 | 20 | 50 | 4 |
Prerequisites
Status of admitted student
Interest in international relations
Attendance of lectures and seminars
Study of recommended literature
Content (Syllabus outline)
The fundamental question of international relations, and thus the subject of the International Community and International Relations course (hereinafter MSMO) is a question of war and peace. The MSMO defines the basic terms international community and international relations, while emphasizing the origin of the modern “world order” in the Westphalia system (1648), which established the sovereignty of states, and its later application – the Congress of Vienna (1815), which ended the Napoleonic Wars, especially the French revolution. The Westphalian and Vienna systems were attacked and violated by national upheavals and revolutionary movements in recent times, especially Fascism, National Socialism and Communism. The latest example of the Westphalian system violations is the Islamic State (ISIS). These historical events are associated with realistic (Morgenthau, Kissinger) and idealistic (Wilson) theories of international relations.
Special attention is paid to the issue of self-determination, the end of colonialism, the turning point in the events after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the separation of peoples from countries, e.g. the Yugoslav crisis, the collapse of the Soviet Union and various national independence quests, whereby it is necessary to examine in more detail the concepts of the people, ethnic community, nation and state.
In continuation, particular attention is paid to the past and current Slovenian role in the international arena. For this purpose, we present the milestones from 1848 (including the May Declaration, the Corfu Declaration, the Čebine declaration, the fundamental points of the LF, etc.) until 1987 (Nova revija magazine, new parties, etc.). All wars end through diplomacy. Diplomacy deals with peace technology (international negotiations, conferences, agreements, conventions, resolutions …). Within the framework of the MSMO, special attention is paid to the establishment of Slovenian diplomacy and its tribulations (Brioni, The Hague, the Spanish compromise, the Drnovšek-Račan agreement. The Vienna Treaty on the Succession of the SFRY …), especially in the OSCE and EU chairmanship.
In the 19th century, interstate relations were regulated with congresses, and later with (peace) conferences. Today, the UN General Assembly, the Permanent Council of the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the European Council (EU), the North Atlantic Council (NATO), etc. are authorized for this purpose. This course deals with international legal instruments such as: the 1945 UN Charter, the 1949 Washington Treaty, the 1955 Austrian State Treaty, the Vienna Conventions of 1961 (dipl. rel.), 1963 (consul. rel.) and 1969 (contract law), the 1960 Declaration “1514”, the 1975 Helsinki Final Act, the 1975 Treaty of Osimo, the 2001 Drnovšek-Račan Agreement, the 2005 Brioni declaration, the 2007-2009 Treaty of Lisbon the 2009-2011 Arbitration Agreement.
Slovenian diplomacy was formed on the basis of Yugoslav diplomacy (not always the most appropriate), which nevertheless deserves to be marked. The following topics are important: the diplomatic tradition of the European powers, Austrian diplomacy, Yugoslav diplomacy and Slovenian diplomacy (Brioni, 7 July 1991); we present individual figures: Metternich, Talleyrand, Ribbentrop, Molotov, Kardelj, Genscher, Baker, Kozirev, Albright, etc. The subject of the analysis will be ministries, cabinets, national security councils, parliamentary committees, etc. We will briefly discuss the costs of traditional and new, large and small diplomacies, the EU’s external services and home diplomacy (GAP).
One of the key issues of the MSMO is: why did the Slovenian state only emerge in 1991? This question is related to the “questionability” of the Slovene nation in the past (Vidmar: Kulturni problem slovenstva 1932, Kardelj: Razvoj slovenskega narodnega vprašanja 1939, Pirjevec: Vprašanje naroda 1970).
We are interested in the weaknesses and strengths of small communities characterized by high social cohesion and control. In international relations, we encounter the position that small states are equal, and have the same duties as large ones.
Objectives and competences
The course introduces the student to legal opinions and legal terminology. It represents the basic introductory course for law studies.
Intended learning outcomes
The student acquires basic knowledge of the essence of the law, its characteristics and regularity, the most important elements, the connection with other social phenomena, the knowledge that is indispensable for the study and understanding of contemporary law and its institutions, and knowledge of the basic legal institutes, legal branches and legal terminology, which is an essential foundation for the further study of individual legal subjects.
Learning and teaching methods
Lectures with the active participation of students; intensifying the knowledge through practical courses by studying practical examples.
Assessment
Type (examination, oral, coursework, project):
Oral examination.
Lecturer’s references
Ph. D. in sociology (Brandeis University 1976), full professorship (University of Ljubljana 1992),
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Slovenia (1990-1992, 2000-2008), Ambassador to U.S. (1997-2000);
teaching at EPF/European Faculty of Law and FDŠ/Faculty of Government and European Studies;
published numerous books and articles on political and diplomatic issues.