BOOKED UP: Iraq, the United Nations and the 'New' and the 'Old' Europe

Week 1, 11-16 hrs

Dr. Hans-Christof Graf von Sponeck Müllheim

Thematic structure:

• EU member states have had difficulties in shaping a common foreign and security policy. Proceedings in the EU Parliament and the UN Security Council reflect this.
• What  constraints does  the EU encounter in the development of an integrated foreign and security  policy? What are the  causes for this reality and what are  the implications  for the EU as a partner in global politics?
• Iraq has been chosen as a complex and multi-faceted example of the challenges facing the EU in the Middle East.
• This country-specific analysis is based on two time periods: i) Iraq under sanctions (1990-2003) and ii) Iraq under occupation (2003-2010).
• Recent reforms introduced by the Lisbon Treaty have provided new opportunities for a coherent EU foreign policy environment. Are the results adequate, and if not, what would it take to create such an environment?

Aims:

Using Iraq as an example,  to review the EU's  capacity of shaping  foreign and security policy, the seminar has the following objectives:

• enhanced understanding of the complexity of EU foreign and security  policy and of the factors which are disabling or facilitating EU responses to international conflicts;
• an ability to identify and analyse   causes of foreign policy differences among EU countries in dealing with political crises in the Middle East, e.g. in Iraq; 
• an understanding of policy alternatives the EU could have pursued in and out-side of the UN Security Council in dealing with the Iraq crisis.

The overall objective of the seminar is for participants to gain insights into the role the EU and its member states played in carrying out its foreign and security policies in the UN Security  Council in handling a major political crisis such as in Iraq.

Method:

There will be a series of short presentations by the lecturer, mini-research papers by the participants on issues raised in the seminar and an extensive review and discussions.

Assessment:

Participation in the seminar and the presentation of short papers will form the basis for assessing performance.

Suggested Reading

 1) UN Charter, especially Chapters. VI & VII

2) EU Treaty of Lisbon, 13 Dec 2007, especially article 188 R (Solidarity Clause) and the Declaration concerning (EU) common foreign and security policy

3) Lisbon NATO Statement, November 2010

4) UN/NATO Cooperation Agreement, 23 September, 2008

5) EU Parliament Resolution on Iraq, 30 January 2003

6) UN (Iraq) Security Council Resolution 1441, 8 November 2002

7) “Europe and America must stand united”, (Iraq) Letter of Eight , 30 January 2003

8) “Vilnius Statement” (on Iraq)  of ten EU member countries from eastern Europe, 6 February 2003

9) Declaration of Russia, Germany and France on war with Iraq, 5 March 2003

Obligatory preparatory reading

Résumé of Hans-Christof Graf von Sponeck:

* 1939 born in Bremen/Germany

* 1960 Abitur in Salem

* 1960 - 1966 studies (history, demography, physical anthropology) in Germany and USA, MA with thesis on transatlantic migrations

* 1966 - 1968 Programme Officer, German Foundation for Cooperation, Bonn, Germany

* 1968 - 2000 UN Civil Service with assignments in Accra, New York, Ankara, Gaberone, Islamabad, New Delhi, Geneva and Baghdad including appointments as UN Head of Mission in Botswana, Pakistan, India and UN Assistant Secretary General responsible for the UN Humanitarian Programme in Iraq

* Teaching graduate seminars at the centres for Conflict Research and Near and Middle East Studies, University of Marburg as well as at the UN System Staff College in Torino (Italy)