This course provides students with an overview of the main features of Swiss foreign and security policy since 1945. The focus is on the emergence and development of security policy strategies and instruments in a historical context.
Objective
The participants have a solid overview of the evolution of Swiss foreign and security policy since 1945.
Content
The first part of the lecture clarifies the term "security" and analyzes the change of its meaning in politics and academia over time. The focus of the second part is on the development of Swiss security policy since 1945. We will look at the different concepts of security policy, which range from "total defense" to cooperative security. We then will analyze the gap between planning and execution, focusing on the two key developments of security policy, that is foreign policy and armed forces.
Literature
Mandatory reading: Spillman, Kurt R., Andreas Wenger, Christoph Breitenmoser and Marcel Gerber. Schweizer Sicherheitspolitik seit 1945: Zwischen Autonomie und Kooperation. Zürich: Verlag neue Zürcher Zeitung, 2001.
The book is out of print, students can access the text in the virtual class room (Moodle).
Prerequisites / Notice
The lecture is supported by a virtual class room. If you have questions concerning the lecture, please contact Lukas Meyer, Link.