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Instructors: Tim Thies; Maren Vieluf
Event type:
Practical course/lab
Displayed in timetable as:
96-4.25
Credits:
2,0
Language of instruction:
German
Min. | Max. participants:
6 | 20
Waiting list:
Waiting list quota: 20%
More information:
This course is open to all students of the Master's programme "Peace and Security Studies" (regardless of whether they are enrolled in the one-year or two-year version).
The course is also open to students of other degree programmes. The prerequisite for participation in the course is attendance at the first session. In case of non-attendance, the place will be forfeited and will be made available for latecomers.
Comments/contents:
In February 2021, Washington and Moscow extended the last remaining arms control agreement limiting the strategic nuclear arsenals of the two superpowers USA and Russia, the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START). They also resumed bilateral talks on strategic stability (Strategic Stability Dialogue) and aimed at negotiations on a follow-on agreement to New START.
With Russia’s offensive war against Ukraine, however, Washington and Moscow have suspended the bilateral talks. Russia’s aggression and s use of nuclear threats as a shield against Western intervention in the war has put into question many long-held assumptions about ‘strategic stability’ and deterrence. By threatening nuclear escalation, President Putin’s rhetoric lowered the threshold for the use of nuclear weapons and reinforced existing arms race dynamics.
What, then, can pave the way back to the negotiating table to enable the negotiation of a follow-up agreement by 2026? What topics can and should be discussed? What will be the outcome of such talks and negotiations? These and other questions will be elaborated in the seminar through presentations, discussions and a negotiation simulation.
The seminar covers the following topics:
- nuclear arms control and the danger of an arms race
- the concept of strategic stability and the contribution of arms control
- the logic and scope of bilateral arms control negotiations
The competing interests of the United States and Russia in these issue areas will be explored in presentations. The participants will seek to implement the respective positions in mock negotiations of a New START follow-on agreement.
Learning objectives:
The seminar covers the following topics:
- nuclear arms control and the danger of an arms race
- the concept of strategic stability and the contribution of arms control
- the logic and scope of bilateral arms control negotiations
The competing interests of the United States and Russia in these issue areas will be explored in presentations. The participants will seek to implement the respective positions in mock negotiations of a New START follow-on agreement.
Didactic concept:
Through presentations and mock negotiations, the seminar will provide an opportunity to discuss basic concepts of disarmament, arms control and strategic stability. We want to discuss why it is so difficult for Russia and the United States to agree on measures to prevent an arms race and reduce risks of nuclear weapons’ use. In particular, we want to explore possible future arms control negotiations and develop these scenarios as part of the simulation.
Literature:
Woolf, Amy F., "Nuclear Arms Control After the Biden-Putin Summit," Congressional Research Service, 2021, https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/IN/IN11694.
Bugos, Shannon and Kingston Reif, "U.S., Russia Agree to Strategic Stability Dialogue," Arms Control Today, July/August 2021, https://www.armscontrol.org/act/2021-07/news/us-russia-agree-strategic-stability-dialogue.
Futter, Andrew, "US-Russia Strategic Stability Dialogue: Why It’s Good to Talk", Valdai Club, September 1, 2021, https://valdaiclub.com/a/highlights/us-russia-strategic-stability-dialogue-why/
Williams, Heather, "How to Avoid the Dark Ages of Arms Control. There are two possible pathways after Ukraine. One of them is harrowing.", Foreign Policy, April 1, 2022, https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/04/01/russia-war-ukraine-nuclear-arms-control-dark-ages-renaissance/.
Additional examination information:
Active Participation in the seminar and the mock negotiations as well as a short presentation
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