Year 2011-12

Spanish Foreign Policy (21694)

Qualification: Degree in Political Science and Administration
Year: 3rd/4th
Term: 3rd
Number of ECTS credits: 4
Hours of student dedication: 100 hours
Teaching language: Spanish
Teacher: Josep Ibáñez Muñoz

 

1. Introduction to the course

Spanish Foreign Policy is an introduction to the analysis of foreign policy in general as well as an in-depth look at Spanish foreign policy. The contents and activities of the subject will allow students to gain an initial specialization in international studies. Students who successfully complete the course will be prepared for professional activity in the international sphere - foreign administration, international institutions, consulting etc. - it will also offer a sound basis for further postgraduate studies.

2. Competences to be achieved

The course aims at the development of both generic and specific competences.

 

The generic competences to be achieved look to transmit the necessary knowledge to understand the foreign policy of different States and specifically that of Spain. To do so the subject aims to familiarize the student with the analytical tools required to study foreign policy, a sub area in the discipline of international relations. Secondly the subject applies these means to Spanish foreign policy from 1975 to today, with emphasis on the geographical areas have been prioritised. In doing so, student will develop: instrumental competences (ability to analyse and synthesise, ability to organize and plan, ability to manage information, problem solving, decision making), interpersonal competences (ability to be critical and self criticise, ability to work in a team, interpersonal abilities, ability to work in an international context); and systemic competences (capacity to apply knowledge to practice, capacity to learn, capacity to adapt to new situations, leadership skills, ability to work autonomously).

 

In terms of specific competences, it seeks to develop some of the competences valued in professional sectors with an international dimension such as foreign administrations and ministries, international governmental organizations, international consultancy firms and international relation research.  For this, students will be required to reflect on how decisions to solve specific problems can be reached.  It will require students to learn how to manage specialised information and require them to practise communication techniques (written and oral) and group dynamics (coordination activities, use of initiative and leadership). The expected result is for students to develop some specific competences such as the ability to:  recognise the structure and functioning of political systems; recognise the structure and functioning of political institutions; recognise the behaviour of political actors; recognise political communication techniques; recognise the historic dimension of political and social processes; recognise the structure, organization and functioning of Public Administrations at different levels; recognise the legal framework within which Public Administrations act; plan, implement, evaluate and analyse public policies; recognise international politics.

 

3. Contents

Contents block I. Foreign Policy analysis

Unit 1. Aprroaches to the study of foreign policy

Unit 2. Factors that condition the process of foreign policy

Unit 3. The process of foreign policy: the actors involved and decision making

 

Contents block II. Analysis and evolution of Spanish foreign Policy

Unit 4. Elaboration of Spanish foreign policy

Unit 5. Spanish foreign policy in historical perspective

 

Contents block III. The projection of Spanish foreign policy

Unit 6. Europeism in Spanish foreign policy

Unit 7. Atlantisism in Spanish foreign policy

Unit 8. Spanish foreign policy in the Mediterranean

Unit 9. Spanish foreign policy in Latin America

Unit 10. New geographic projections and Spanish foreign policy

 

4. Assessment

The assessment will be a combination of continuous work and a final exam. The marks obtained will be combined to make up the final mark

The final mark may be increased by up to 10% by doing a voluntary essay on one of the subjects proposed by the teacher at the beginning of the course.

 

5. Bibliography and other resources

5.1. Bibliography

Arenal, Celestino del, Política exterior de España hacia Iberoamérica, Ed. Complutense, Madrid, 1994.

Clarke, M. and White, B., Understanding Foreign Policy. The Foreign Policy Systems Approach, Edward Elgar, Aldershot, 1990.

Gillespie, R.; Rodrigo, F.; Story, J. (eds.), Las relaciones exteriores de la España democrática, Alianza Universal, Madrid, 1995.

Hudson, Valerie M., Foreign Policy Analysis: Classic and Contemporary Theory, Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2006.

Lieber, Robert J. (ed.), Foreign Policy, Londres: Ashgate, 2008.

Maxwell, Kenneth (comp.), Spanish Foreign and Defense Policy, Westview Press, Boulder, 1991.

Mesa, Roberto, Democracia i política exterior en España, EUDEMA, Madrid, 1988.

Mesa, Roberto, La reinvención de la política exterior española, Centro de Estudios Constitucionales, Madrid, 1996.

Morán, Fernando, España en su sitio, Plaza i Janés, Barcelona, 1990.

Morán, Fernando, Una política exterior para España, Planeta, Barcelona, 1980.

Pereira, J.C. (coord.), La política exterior de España (1800-2003), Ariel, Barcelona, 2003.

Pereira, J.C., Introducción al estudio de la política exterior de España (siglos XIX i XX), Akal, Madrid, 1983.

Pollack, Benny and Hunter, Graham, The Paradox of Spanish Foreign Policy. Spain's International Relations From Franco to Democracy, Pinter, Londres, 1987.

Remiro Brotons, A., La acción exterior del estado, Tecnos, Madrid, 1984.

Tusell, Javier; Avilés, Juan; Pardo, Rosa (eds.), La política exterior de España en el siglo XX, UNED, Madrid, 2000.

Vilar, Juan Bta. (comp.), Las relaciones internacionales en la España contemporánea, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, 1989.

Viñas, A., En las garras del águila, Crítica, Madrid, 2003.

5.2. Other resources

Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores y de Cooperación
http://www.maec.es/

Ministerio de Defensa
http://www.mde.es/

Representación Permanente de España ante la Unión Europea
http://www.es-ue.org/

Representación Permanente de España ante las Naciones Unidas
http://www.spainun.org/

Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo
http://www.aecid.es/

Real Instituto Elcano
http://www.realinstitutoelcano.org/

Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior (FRIDE)
http://www.fride.org/

Observatorio de política exterior española (Opex)-Fundación Alternativas
http://www.falternativas.org/opex

Instituto de Cuestiones Internacionales y Política Exterior (INCIPE)
http://www.incipe.org

Estudios de política exterior
http://www.politicaexterior.com

 

6. Methodology

The subject follows a method which combines classroom based activities with non classroom based activities. There are two types of classroom based sessions: lectures and seminars. Non classroom based activities refer to the preparation of seminars, readings and the writing of a voluntary essay proposed by the teacher.

7. Programme of activities

Week	Ses	Typ.	Session Contents	Student's work during the week
				Learning activities		Hrs.in class	Hrs. Out of class
				In class	Autonomous work
Iª	1	T	Course presentation - lecture for the whole group (Unit 1)	Programme explanation	Reading	2	5
	2	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 2)	Programme explanation		1
IIª	3	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 3)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	4	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 4)	Programme explanation		1
IIIª	5	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 5)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	6	S	Seminar 1: subgroup 11	Decision making		2
IVª	7	S	Seminar 1: subgroup 12	Decision making	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
Vª	8	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 5)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	9	S	Seminar 2: subgroup 11	Energy supply		2
VIª	10	T	Lecture  for the whole group (Unit 6)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	11	S	Seminar 2: subgroup 12	Energy supply		2
VIIª	12	T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 7)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	13	S	Seminar 3: subgroup 11	Spain in the wikileaks		2
VIIIª	14	T	Lecture  for the whole group (Unit 8)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
	15	S	Seminar 3: subgroup 12	Spain in the wikileaks		2
IXª		T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 9)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
		S	Seminar 4: subgroup 11	Spain in the UN		2
Xª		T	Lecture for the whole group (Unit 10)	Programme explanation	Reading. Seminar preparation	2	5
		S	Seminar 4: subgroup 12	Spain in the UN		2
Dedicated hours: Subtotal						40	50
XIª   XIIª	Hours of student dedication for preparing the final evaluation						10
TOTAL HOURS FOR THE SUBJECT							100

 Ses: nº of session; Type: type of session, T (theoretical), S (seminar).