European Security Dilemmas: Deterrence, Alliances, and the Return of War

Catalog description

For the first time since 1945, large-scale war has returned to Europe, forcing a fundamental reappraisal of the assumptions that governed Western security for a generation. This course argues that Europe faces not one dilemma but several: a revisionist Russia on its borders, a changing American commitment to the continent's defense, and even China's growing presence as an actor in the European continent. Combining international relations theory with current strategic practice, the course traces the logic of deterrence, the cohesion of NATO and the minilateral pacts emerging alongside it, and the particular exposure of Europe's frontline small states as they navigate these overlapping pressures.