Course description
This course explores the concept of grand strategy in international relations and US foreign policy. The main purpose is to analyze the ways in which nations formulate, implement, and assess strategic options to advance their perceived interests in the international arena. How do states allocate their resources to achieve their goals? Special attention is placed on the study of political, military, and diplomatic resources in the context of American foreign policy. The course has three components. The first addresses the main theoretical approaches to grand strategy in international relations literature. The second traces the historical development of US grand strategy. The third evaluates the policy relevance of grand strategy options available to the US today. Some of the questions that guide our discussions are: what is grand strategy and what is it for? What are the sources of grand strategy and how are grand strategies formulated? What are the main tools to implement a grand strategy? Should the US engage in an active internationalist strategy or retreat from its international commitments?
