In the latter portion of the course we are going to consider a number of contemporary issues in international relations. Some of them are extremely broad (international political economics, war), others are just somewhat extremely broad (nuclear proliferation, terrorism).The key is going to be picking a topic that is narrow enough to deal with in an 2000-2500 word paper (that’s roughly 8 to 10 pages).
TOPIC FOR THIS PAPER: THE SYRIAN WAR
1) Give a BRIEF summary of your topic. What are the major relevant details about the subject? This should be NO MORE THAN 750 WORDS. Thats why you need to narrow your topic before you sit down to write your paper.
2) Are there any relevant international agreements about your topic? Has the United Nations or other IGOs dealt with your topic? What NGO’s are active in this area and what are their goals?
3) Who are the (most) relevant countries? What are their interests or goals as regards your topic? Go beyond just restating what you said in Question 1.
4) Analyze your topic from a realist and liberal perspective. How would each approach explain the way countries and individuals have behaved in your topic?
5) What is the future of your topic?
MUST FOCUS THE PAPER ON THOSE 5 QUESTIONS REGARDS THE SYRIAN WAR. AT LEAST 2000-2500 WORDS
