lecture six cold war stability. the cuban missile crisis soviets attempt to place nuclear weapons in...

Lecture Six

Cold War Stability

The Cuban Missile CrisisSoviets Attempt to Place Nuclear Weapons in Cuba Is U.S. Willing to Risk War

to Prevent This?U.S. Response Very Convincing. Kennedy Indicates

Willingness to Use ForceSoviets Withdraw Missiles.Crisis Changes Nature of Cold War Rivalry: Last Time U.S. and Soviet Union Find Themselves Involved in a Direct Confrontation

What Was the Cold War About?

Traditionalists: Soviet Expansionism

Revisionists: American Expansionism

Post-Revisionists: Bipolar Power Structure

Continuation of the First and Second World Wars

Why No “Hot” War?

Causes of Stability in the Postwar Period

Structural FactorsBipolarity System that Emerged After WWII Accurately Reflected

the Balance of Power in the State System A Simple system that Did Not Require Brilliant

Leadership to Run Because of Power Discrepancy, Individual Alliance

Defections Were Unimportant

Nuclear Weapons Made the Costs of War Abundantly Clear These Costs Made Leaders More Risk Averse Created an Incentive to Manage Crises to Avoid

Escalation

Rules to Manage the Rivalry

Manage the Nuclear Balance MAD Arms Control ABM Treaty

Avoid Direct Confrontation Proxy Warfare

Accept Spheres of Influence; Don’t Challenge Anomalies Berlin Cuba

Leadership is Out of Bounds

Realism in the 20th Century

The Rise of German, American, and Soviet PowerWho would Claim Britain’s Role in the International System?Shift in Center of Power: From Euro-Centric World to US-USSR Dominated.Cold War RivalryThe 21st Century: Multipolar, Unipolar, or Power Transition?

The Rise of China

Strengths of Realism

Captures a Central Dynamic of International Politics

Parsimonious

Limitations of Realism

1. Provides No Role for:

Domestic Politics

Individuals

International Organizations

2. Narrow Conception of What matters in International Politics.

--Great Powers, War and Peace matter.

--All other issues either subsumed into war and peace or considered irrelevant.

3. Excludes the Possibility of Change in the international system

The Test

6 Short-Answer Questions (60%).1 Essay Question (40%).Emphasize Concepts Rather Than Opinions.Some Simple Math For Allocating Time:50 *.6 = 30. 30/6=5. Five Minutes Per

Short Answer.50 *.4 = 20. Twenty Minutes for Essay.

What was NSC-68, and what impact did it have on US policy towards the Soviet Union?

Ideal answer: NSC-68 was prepared by the U.S. National Security Council in 1950. It predicted a Soviet attack in four to five years. To meet this threat, it recommended a large increase in US military expenditures. It marked the beginning of the militarization of the Cold War.

Nye provides three explanations of the Cold War. Briefly describe each, and then briefly discuss which, according to Nye, is

correct.

Answer: Traditionalists: Soviet Aggression; Revisionists—American Aggression; Post-Revisionist—Bipolar Power Structure. Nye argues that…