FSS:BSS107 Threats - Course Information

BSS107 Security Threats

Extent and Intensity

1/1. 7 credit(s). Type of Completion: zk (examination).

Teacher(s)

doc. Mgr. Josef Kraus, Ph.D. (lecturer)
doc. Tomáš Šmíd, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Tomáš Bělonožník (seminar tutor)
Mgr. Jan Hort (seminar tutor)
Mgr. Petr Martinovský (seminar tutor)
Mgr. et Mgr. Kateřina Tvrdá, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)

Guaranteed by

prof. JUDr. PhDr. Miroslav Mareš, Ph.D.
Division of Security and Strategic Studies – Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Mgr. Libuše Stará
Supplier department: Division of Security and Strategic Studies – Department of Political Science – Faculty of Social Studies

Timetable

Thu 9:45–11:15 exP21

Prerequisites

We expect a thorough knowledge of this book: Buzan, Barry – Ole Waever – Jaap de Wilde (2005): Bezpečnost. Nový rámec pro analýzu. Brno: Barrister & Principal.

Course Enrolment Limitations

The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.

fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with

there are 14 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display

Course objectives

The course aims to introduce risks and threats of the modern era. The new approaches to security research will be taken into account, so the course will not be restricted to "hard security" only. The attention will be given to so-called new security threats (asymmetric threats) as well as to the research of contemporary armed conflicts which have a different character than classical "clausewitzian" war.

Syllabus

• 1. Introduction - defining the terms threat, risk, new security threats, conflict, war, etc. - Šmíd, Vaďura Working text: Buzan, Barry – Ole Waever – Jaap de Wilde (2005): Bezpečnost. Nový rámec pro analýzu. Brno: Barrister & Principal. Chapter Úvod. 2. A theoretical definition of conflict – Šmíd Working text: Brown, M. (2001): The Causes of Internal Conflict. An Overview. In: Brown, M. – Coté Jr., O. – Lynn-Jones, S. – Miller, S. (eds. 2001): Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict. Cambridge: MIT Press. p. 3 - 25. Recommended literature: Moller, B.: Conflict Theory. http://www.diis.dk/graphics/personweb/bmo/Afroconflict-01.doc Rupesinghe, K. (1998): Civil Wars, Civil Peace. London, Sterling: Pluto Press 3. Etnicita and nationalism (conflicts of virtue) – Šmíd Working text: Lake, D. – Rotschild, D. (2001): Containing Fear: The Origins and Management of Ethnic Conflict. In: Brown, M. – Coté Jr., O. – Lynn-Jones, S. – Miller, S. (eds. 2001): Nationalism and Ethnic Conflict. Cambridge: MIT Press. p. 126 – 160. Recommended literature: Šmíd – Vaďura (eds.2007): Etnické konflikty v postkomunistickém prostoru. Brno: CDK. Gurr, T. R. (2000): Peoples Versus States. Washington: United States Institute of Peace Press. 4. Resource conflicts (conflicts of interest) – Vaďura Working text: Renner, Michael (2002): The Anatomy of Resource Wars. Worldwatch Paper 162. http://www.worldwatch.org/system/files/EWP162.pdf, s. 5-22 Recommended literature: Klare, Michael T. (2001): Resource Wars. The New Landscape of Global Conflict. Henry Nolt & Co.: New York Bannon, Ian – Paul Collier (2003): Natural Resources and Violent Conflict. Options and Actions. Washington: The World Bank. http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDSContentServer/WDSP/IB/2004/05/24/000012009_20040524154222/Rendered/PDF/282450Natural0resources0violent0conflict.pdf 5. Reading week Working texts: Šmíd, T. (2007): Konflikt o Náhorní Karabach. In: Šmíd – Vaďura (eds. 2007): Etnické konflikty v postkomunistickém prostoru. Brno: CDK. Šmíd, T. 2007): Postsovětský organizovaný zločin. In: Smolík, J. – Šmíd, T. – Vaďura, V. (2007 eds.): Organizovaný zločin a jeho ohniska v současném světě. Brno: MPÚ. Vaďura, V. (2007): Organizovaný zločin v západní a střední Africe. In: Smolík, J. – Šmíd, T. – Vaďura, V. (2007 eds.): Organizovaný zločin a jeho ohniska v současném světě. Brno: MPÚ. 6. Privatisation of Armed Conflicts – Šmíd Working texts: Singer, P. (2003): Corporate Warriors. Ithaca nad London: Cornell University Press. p. 49 – 70. Recommended literature: Avant, D. (2005: The Market for Force. The Consequences of Privatizing Security. Cambridge: CUP. Fairbanks, Ch. (2002): Weak States and Private Armies. Biessiger, M. – Young, C. (eds. 2002). Beyond State Crisis. Washington: Woodrow Wilson Center Press. 7. Conflict resolution – Vaďura Working text: Paris, Roland (2004): At War’s End: Building Peace After Civil Conflict. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, s. 40-51 Recommended literature: Paris, Roland (2004): At War’s End. Building Peace After Civil Conflict. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Urbanovská, Jana: Operace OSN na udržení míru v Africe po skončení studené války – předpoklady úspěchu. Mezinárodní vztahy 3/2008, s. 22-46 8. Organized Crime – Šmíd Working text: Serrano, M. (2002): Transnational Organized Crime and International Security: Business as Usual. In: Berdal, M. – Serrano, M. (eds. 2002): Transnational Organized Crime and International Security: Business as Usual. London: Lynne Riener Publishers. p. 13 – 36. Recommended literature: Smolík, J. (2007): Uvedení do problematiky organizovaného zločinu. In: Smolík, J. – Šmíd, T. – Vaďura, V. (2007 eds.): Organizovaný zločin a jeho ohniska v současném světě. Brno: MPÚ. 11 – 30. Šmíd, T.(2008): Teoretické vymezení organizovaného zločinu. In: Politologický časopis. V tisku. 30 s. 9. Terrorism – Šmíd Working text: Sageman, M. (2004): Understanding Terror Networks. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. p . 1 – 24. Recommended literature: Mareš, M. (2005): Terorismus v ČR. Brno: Centrum strategických studií Strmiska, M. (2001): Terorismus a demokracie. Brno: MPÚ. 10. The Proliferation of Arms – Šmíd Working text: Cirincione, J. – Wolfsthal, J. Rajkumar, M. (2005): Deadly Arsenals. Washington: Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. p. 3 – 27. Recommended literature: Rojčík, O. – Vilímek, P. (eds. 2006): Proliferace jaderných zbraní: problémoví aktéři. Brno: MPÚ. 11. State Weakness and Failure as a Security Threat – Šmíd Working text: van der Walle, N. (2004) : The Economic Correlates of State Failure: Taxes, Foreign Aid, and Policies. In: Rothberg, R. (ed. 2004) When States Fail. Princeton: Princeton University Press. p.94 – 115 Recommended literature: Zartman, W. (1995): Collapsed States. London: Lynne Riener Publishers. Rotberg, R. (2003): State Failure and State Weakness in a Time of Terror. Washington: Brookings Institution Press. 12. Societary and Health Threats – Šmíd Working text: Cohen, Robin (2006): Migration and its Enemies. Oxford: Ashgate. s. 89 – 110. Recommended literature: Baršová, Andrea - Barša, Pavel (2005): Přistěhovalectví a liberální stát. Brno: MPÚ. WHO: The Worl Health Report 2007. A Safer Future. Dostupné z: http://www.who.int/whr/2007/whr07_en.pdf 13. Environmental Threats – Vaďura Working text: Buzan, Barry – Ole Waever – Jaap de Wilde (2005): Bezpečnost. Nový rámec pro analýzu. Brno: Barrister & Principal, s. 87-111 Recommended literature: Pellow, David N.: Social Inequality and Environmental Conflict. San Diego: University of California. http://www.scielo.br/pdf/ha/v12n25/a02v1225

Literature

• ŠMÍD, Tomáš. Etnické konflikty v postkomunistickém prostoru (Ethnic conflicts in Post-Communist Area). In VAĎURA, Vladimír. Etnické konflikty v postkomunistickém prostoru. Brno: Centrum pro studium demokracie a kultury, 2007, 278 pp. ISBN 978-80-7325-126-0. info
• BUZAN, Barry, Ole WAEVER and Jaap de WILDE. Bezpečnost : nový rámec pro analýzu. Translated by Ivo Lukáš. 1. vyd. Brno: Centrum strategických studií, 2005, 267 s. ISBN 8090333362. info
• PARIS, Roland. At war's end : building peace after civil conflict. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2004, xi, 289. ISBN 0521541972. URL info
• SINGER, P. W. Corporate warriors : the rise of the privatized military industry. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2003, xi, 330. ISBN 0801489156. info
• Natural resources and violent conflict : options and actions. Edited by Ian Bannon - Paul Collier. Washington: The World Bank, 2003, xviii, 409. ISBN 0821355031. info
• KLARE, Michael T. Resource wars : the new landscape of global conflict. 1st ed. New York: Metropolitan Books, 2001, 289 s. ISBN 0805055762. info

Teaching methods

lectures, e- net discussions, position papers, seminra papers

Assessment methods

Seminary papers and position papers: Each student will work out a seminary paper. The issue of the paper has to be agreed by the lecturer. The minimal length is 10 pages, maximum 15 pages. Seminary paper is handed out in electronic form till the 8th week of the course and in paper form in the same term. It is not possible to hand out the seminary paper, if this happens, the student is classified F and has to repeat the course in the next possible half-year. The issue of the seminary paper will be set until the 3rd week of the course, till Friday 3 p.m. If this is not fulfilled, the student is classified F. The seminary paper is evaluated with 0-30 points. The areas evaluated are: 1) quality of analysis, use of theoretico-methodological tools and factual accuracy - 0-15 points 2) originality, stylistic, orthographic and formal quality - 0-10 points 3) quality, richness and diversity of resources and literature - 0-5 points If the seminary paper does not meet the criteria of ethic codex of scientific work (plagiarism), it will be passed to the disciplinary action and the student will be classified F. It is not possible to work out a new (reparatory) seminary paper. The seminary paper has to include the list of key words and an English abstract and it has to be worked out in the format .doc or .rtf. Because of the number of students and insufficient capacity of the faculty, the seminary lessons will be substituted with 2 arrangements. One of them is a regular study of working texts, which will be checked by working out position papers. Each position paper should be 2-3 pages long. Each student can work out at most 10 position papers, at least 5. Each position paper will be evaluated with 0-5 points. The position papers will be sent into the Information system till 23:59 of the day that precedes the day of the lecture. The main areas of evaluation will be the ability of dealing with the issue and its critical evaluation. Activity: Discussion on the issues of particular lectures will be held via Information system and the discussion strings established in connection with the particular issue. This activity will be evaluated with 30 points at most. The entries not dealing with the issue, personal attacks and evident nonsenses will be evaluated with minus points. It is also not possible to work out one entry longer than 1,5 page (2700 signs) - this will be also evaluated with minus points. The strings will be split into 4 seminary groups. Every student will have the right to set at most 2 entries to a particular issue. There will be also a mid-term test held during the course. The exact term of the test will not be told to the students in advance; it should be held between 4rd and 10th week of the course. The test will consist of 2 open and 4 closed questions. The open questions will be evaluated with 0-6 points, the closed ones with 0-2 points. The maximum of the points is thus 20. Final examination test: The final examination test will consist of 8 open and 8 closed questions. The maximum of points for this test will be 100; it is necessary to pass it with at least 60%, which means 60 points (without taking into account previous study outcomes). The overall evaluation will be done according to this schema: The maximum amount of points for all the activities during the course is 230. A = 230 - 210 points B = 192 – 209 points C = 174 – 191 points D = 157 – 173 points E = 138 – 156 points F = 137 and less.

Language of instruction

Czech

Further Comments

The course is taught annually.

Listed among pre-requisites of other courses

• BSSb1112 Threats and Risks of the Present World
  !BSS112 && !NOW(BSS112) && !NOW(BSS107) && !BSS107  

• Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2014, recent)
  
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