This course is devoted to issues of political science research, from theoretical and methodological points of view, and it proposes to revisit the major themes that characterize the discipline. What are the main research areas favored by political scientists today? What are the theoretical implications? What impact can political science research have on the societies studied?

This course provides a multidisciplinary approach to the challenges of globalization, with a particular emphasis placed on its scope and its economic consequences. We will discuss the much debated theoretical questions about globalization, and combine it with an analysis of changes in the balance between powers in the 20th and 21st centuries, including the decline of traditional powers, the emergence of new regional powers, the multiplication of decision centers, and the role of international governance in organizations.

International organizations mainly the UN and regional organizations like the League of Arab States the European Union among others play an increasingly important role in the world and in different regions. This course offers students insights and practical knowledge about the conduct of multilateral diplomacy in different fields with particular focus on the Middle East.

The seminar focuses on the comparative study of foreign policy. It addresses the foreign policies of Great Powers, medium sized Powers and regional Powers. It starts by a theoretical and empirical analysis of the decision making system in these countries, as well as the patterns of foreign policies. The comparative analysis is also focused on the elements shaping FP decision making and conduct of foreign policy (the different components of the external and internal factors shaping the decision making). Particular emphasis will be put on their foreign policies in the Middle East.

This seminar course is intended to provide an analysis of the regional system and the international relations of the Middle East. We will examine the genealogy and the main features of the regional system: level of analysis, regional security complex, the revival of subnational and transnational ideologies, the emergence of the role of non-state actors in regional politics and conflict situations, the geopolitical dynamics of the Arab Spring, the increasing role and weight of non-Arab regional powers (Turkey, Iran, etc.), the new patterns of competition between major powers (Russia, U.S., etc.), and the geo-sectarian competition between Iran and Saudi Arabia. In the second part, the course will cover specific regional challenges like the refugees, food security and water scarcity and energy security in the Middle East. The course will finalize with an assessment concerning the future perspectives for Lebanon within the geopolitics of the Middle East.

Terrorism has become a major issue in international relations long before 9/11. The Cold War was already the framework of various ideological movements using this method. It has spread and now re-diversify, and is a structural element of world conflicts. International security adapted progressively but is still in search of efficient capacities and strategies. This course will therefore mix various actors and contexts on a dynamic and prospective path. The course has four sections: A. news comments, B. case study, C. theory: concepts and their applicability, D. Simulation Middle East War On Terror (MEWOT).

The objective of this seminar is to provide the students with an introduction necessary to the understanding of current debates about the threats of security order. The first part of the course provides an introduction to theoretical interpretations of international security. The second part, it deals with general issues such as coercion and use of force, alliances, security cooperation, etc.

extremely important for understanding the link between international relations and geopolitics. In purely spatial terms, geopolitics is the study of boundaries and areas. In conceptual terms, geopolitics comprises the study of international relations and the outcome of power struggles, at local and global scales. It explores events such as the emergence of new states, the fragmentation of countries (e.g. the former Czechoslovakia, and the former Yugoslavia), and regional conflicts affecting several countries. The main objective of this course is to provide students with the theoretical tools to analyze the geopolitical risks, and to the special role that geopolitical events play in asset prices; it also aims to provide you with tools to make better practical use of general geopolitical and diplomatic awareness and with frameworks to think through the “breaking news”. The course has two parts. Part one introduces key ideas of geopolitics and diplomacy and provides basic tools to analyze geopolitical risk events. These tools are largely drawn from the world of elementary political and intelligence analysis. As you will discover (repeatedly) in class, to analyze is not always to quantify (and vice versa). In the most practical way, Part one is to help you “Think about thinking “and teach you how to avoid common errors in reacting to geopolitical, news, events and trends. Part two then offers you a chance to practice the styles of thinking and tools acquired in part one.

This course focuses on oil and gas policies in the region and the role these sources of energy and others played in shaping and influencing the regional agenda, the configuration of power in the region and the international politics of the Middle East. It also addresses the different impact on the oil producing states, mainly the emergence of rentier economies.

International humanitarian law is a set of rules designed to limit the effects of armed conflicts. It protects persons who are not taking part in hostilities. This seminar examines the development and implementation of international treaties and conventions, through an approach that is both theoretical (legal standards) and practical (diplomatic action, action on the ground). It attempts to answer the question to what extent international humanitarian law is able to protect the victims of armed conflicts.

The course is intended to provide an analysis of the evolution of the complex relations of interdependence between the Middle East and Europe. It focuses particularly on the development of the multilateral structures of cooperation between the two regions such as the Euro Arab Dialogue, the Euro Mediterranean Partnership known as the Barcelona Process, and the Union For the Mediterranean plus other smaller structures of cooperation. The course addresses the context, the factors, and the constraints that shaped the creation and the functioning of these different structures of cooperation. The course addresses also the different challenges facing the Middle East and Europe since the coming of the "Arab Spring" and the implications of these challenges for the Trans Mediterranean relations in the political security economic and cultural fields.