This course introduces students to primary security issues in the Western Pacific region and provides some tools to consider the subject. Topics to be covered include the international security structure in the Western Pacific, the cross-Taiwan Strait dispute, the North Korean nuclear issue, territorial disputes in the South and East China Seas, and security vulnerabilities from economic interdependence.
- Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge of theories of international relations and apply them in analyzing events and outcomes in world affairs.
- Thomas J. Christensen, Worse than a Monolith: Alliance Politics and Problems of Coercive Diplomacy in Asia (Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press, 2011)
- Shelly Rigger, Why Taiwan Matters: Small Island, Global Powerhouse (Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 2011)
- Victor Cha and David Kang, Nuclear North Korea: A Debate on Engagement Strategies (New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 2018)
Grades will be determined as follows:
- Intelligence briefings (10%, 5% each)
- Response paper (10%)
- Discussion handout (10%)
- Class participation (35%)
- Policy memo (35%)
This course is run primarily as seminars that require active and engaged participation.
Students are expected to maintain the highest standards of academic integrity. All work submitted must be original and properly cited. Plagiarism, cheating, or any form of academic dishonesty will result in immediate consequences as outlined in the university's academic integrity policy.
INTA 3131/6131 Pacific Security Issues, Spring 2026
This is a Core IMPACTS course that is part of the Social Sciences area.
Core IMPACTS refers to the core curriculum, which provides students with essential knowledge in foundational academic areas. This course will help students master course content, and support students’ broad academic and career goals.
This course should direct students toward a broad Orienting Question:
- How do I understand human experiences and connections?
Completion of this course should enable students to meet the following Learning Outcome:
- Students will effectively analyze the complexity of human behavior, and how historical, economic, political, social, or geographic relationships develop, persist, or change.
Course content, activities and exercises in this course should help students develop the following Career-Ready Competencies:
- Intercultural Competence
- Perspective-Taking
- Persuasion