CZECH FOREIGN RELATIONS - PAST AND PRESENT

CEP351

[ Reading material , Instructor , How to Obtain Credits ]

The purpose of this course is to acquaint students with the general conditions under which the Central and East European nation-states (established or reshaped after WWI) have tried to reinforce their political, social, and economic security in the 20th century and afterwards. This analysis will focus on the Czech Republic and most of its neighbors. The course is designed to teach students about the specific internal and external situations of a given country in order for the student to better understand the motions and fatal decisions made by the government before.

Content:

The ideas and activities of the founder of Czechoslovakia, Thomas G. Masaryk, his successor Edward Benes, and their fellow fighter for democracy and collective security, Jan Masaryk. The ideas and activities of the communist rulers and the ideas and activities of the first president of the newly independent Czechoslovakia and later of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Havel, in the sphere of international affairs. The topics will be evaluated in a regional and global context.

The three great transformations of organizing structures and motivating forces (i.e. after WWI, WWII, and the end of the Cold War) in European relations form the background for this course, which will also focus on present-day efforts to reach a new level of cooperation in economics, foreign relations and security affairs.

1. The Czechs and Slovaks in the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, Failed hopes in a democratic federation of equal nationalities

2. Professor T.G.Masaryk - philosopher and politician

3. World War I and the anti-austrian efforts of T.G.Masaryk, E.Benes and M.R.Stefanik, the role of Czechoslovak Legions

4. Peace Treaties of Versailles, St.Germain and Trianon, establishment of the Czechoslovak Republic, burden of minorities

5. Economic crisis and onslaught of Nazism in Germany and among the ethnic Germans abroad

6. Failure of the League of Nations, CSR as the last island of democracy in Eastern Central Europe

7. Futile attemps for Collective Security, mutilation of CSR at Munich (1938) and the occupation of Czechoslovakia (1939)

8. Czechoslovakia in the anti-Hitlerian coalition, the Slovak state

9. Examination: Period before the year 1939

10. Liberation of the CSR, the Kosice Program of the coalition government, the Alliance Treaties and relations of CSR (1943-1946)

11. Czechoslovak-Soviet relations in 1947 and the thwarted Marshall-Plan participation

12. International circumstances and consequences of the February events of 1948

13. COMECON and Warsaw Treaty: special features of the position of Czechoslovakia in Eastern Europe

14. Efforts to reduce dependence on the USSR in 1968 and their failure

15. The internal and international impact of 21st August 1968 - Soviet invasion to Czechoslovakia

16. Changes in relations of the USSR to Central and Eastern Europe after the coming of M.Gorbachev to power

17. Examination: Period between the years 1939 -1989

18. New orientation of the CS foreign policy after November 1989, relations to the great powers, particulary USA and united Germany

19. Relations of CSR and CR with the Developing Countries

20. Czecho-Slovak contradictions leading to the partition of CSFR

21. Does neutrality guarantee independence of a small country?

22. Visegrad group of states, its establishment and development

23. Main features of the foreign policies of the Czech and Slovak sovereign states

24. Czech Republic as a member of NATO: new duties and prospects

25. OSCE-WEU-NATO: rivals or complementary partners?

26. Czech Republic on the way to the EU: amount of boons and risks

27. Examination: Contemporary period (after 1989)

28. Central Europe in the future European Security system

Reading: (a, b,c - enclosed in binder)

a) The Period until 1939

• Petr Cornej: Fundamentals of Czech History, 1992 (pp.46)
• Jaroslav Opat: T. G. Masaryk - The Great European and Citizen of the World, Prague 1997 (pp.20-37)
• R.W. Seton: Watson and his Relations with the Czechs and Slovaks, Prague 1995 (pp.21)
• The Ethnic Minority Problems in Selected East-Europ. Countries (Tables and maps)
• Pavel Eisler: Munich - A Retrospect, Prague 1958 (pp.54)
• Michael G. Roskin: The Rebirth of East Europe, New Jersey 1991 (pp.15-46)
• Alexandr Ort: Edward Benes - European Politician, Prague 1997 (pp.15-23)

b) The Period between 1939 and 1989

• Alexandr Ort: Edward Benes - European Politician, Prague 1997 (pp.23-28)
• Michael G. Roskin: The Rebirth of East Europe, New Jersey 1991 (pp.66-164)
• Charter 77 - Legality of Illegality (pp.11)
• Vaclav Havel: Living in Truth (Biography), London, Faber and Faber (pp.14)
• Radomír Luza: The Sudeten German Question, Cedar Rapids 2003 (pp.17)

c) Contemporary Period (after 1989)

• Curt Gasteiger: Eastern Europe between Reform and Resignation (pp.3)
• Otto Pick: Eastern Europe: Czechoslovakia's Divisions (pp.3)
• Czech National Interests, Inst. of Int. Relations, Prague 1993 (pp.60)
• Visegrad Summit (by J.Weydenthal)
• Jan Obrman: Uncertain Prospects for Independent Slovakia (pp.6)
• Karol Okolicsanyi: Bratislava Diverts the Danube (pp.6)
• J. Stepanovsky: Cooperation within the Central European Visegrad Group, Perspectives-Winter 1994-95, pp.91-98 (Inst. of Int. Relations, Prague)
• Alexander Duleba: Slovakia Pursuing an Eastern Agenda (pp.4)
• J. Stepanovsky: War, detente and the declining importance of neutrality ,Perspectives-Winter 1998-99, pp.11-20 (Inst. of Int. Relat., Prague)
• Josef Joffe: Collective Security and the Future of Europa (pp.15)
• Victor Yves Ghebali: The July CSCE Helsinki Decision (pp.6)
• Douglas Clarke: A Guide to European New Security Architecture (pp.7)
• Andreas Nicklisch: Justification weak for NATO attacks, The Prague Post 1999
• Margarita Mathiopoulos: A stronger, global Europe, IHT November 2003

Further Recommended Literature

• J. V. Polisensky: England and Czechoslovakia in Outline, 1945 (pp.25)
• Czech History - Chronological Survey, INFOA-ISBN 80, pp.150
• R.W. Seton-Watson and His Relations with the Czechs and Slovaks - Documensts, Ustav T.G.Masaryka 1995 (pp.694)
• M. Novak: Munich Pact 1938, Inst. of Int. Relations, Prague 1988
• Lesson from History -Documents concerning Nazi policies for Germanisation and extermination in Czechoslovakia, Orbis - Prague 1961
• L. M. White: On All Fronts - Czechoslovaks in World War II., Columbia University Press 1991, pp.296
• J. Valenta: Soviet Intervention in Czechoslovakia 1968
• William E. Griffith: Winter in Prague, Documents
• J. Pinder: The European Community and Eastern Europe, Oxford U. Press, 1991
• The Security Policy of the Czech Republic, Prague - IIR 1997, pp.103
• Otto Pick: The Czech Republic in the World, Perspectives - Summer 1997 (IIR)
• Hungary and Central Europe, Listy - Slovak Foreign Pol. Assoc., Nov. 1998
• Carol Skalnik Leff: The Czech and Slovak Republics, Parts 1-3, Westview Press 1997

Prerequisities:

BSc level course in political science

Instructor:

JUDr. Jiri Stepanovsky, CSc.
Faculty of Law
Charles University Prague

Co-Founder of the Association For the European Home. Former Head of the Department of International Relations at the School of Political and Economic Sciences. Former Deputy Director at the Institute of International Relations, Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Former Visiting Professor in Political Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston-Chicago, USA. Member of the Editorial Board of International Politics and Former Chairman of Czech Atlantic Commission. Author of several books concerning international relations. Lectured in USA, India, Pakistan, and Southeast Asia.

How to Obtain Credits

The students will go in for three examinations: (1. period till 1939, 2. period 1939 - 1989, 3. contemporary period - after 1989) Each written exam test may be evaluated up to 25 points (%). Participation (incl. activity in discussion): attainable total 25% will be reduced to only 20% (if absent up to 7 times), to only 5% (if absent up to 10 times) and to no points (absent more than ten times).

Grading:

93 - 100%  A  (Excellent)
85 -  92%  B  (Very Good)
77 -  84%  C  (Average)
69 -  76%  D  (Below Average)
61 -  68%  E  (Failure)
55 -  60%  Fx (Fail - possible to retake the exam)
54% - less F  (Fail)