STV2240 – International military operations

Course content

Teaching and examination in STV2240 was given for the last time autumn 2014. The course is replaced with a similar course on 1000-level, STV1240 – International military operations (discontinued). Teaching and examination in STV1240 will be given for the first time autumn 2015. Students who have passed STV2240 cannot include both courses in their degree, due to the similarities between them.

This course will introduce students to the challenges of contemporary security issues in peace and stabilization operations. Since the end of the Cold War, international terrorism and humanitarian concerns have changed the nature of military operations in ways that challenge the traditional theoretical thinking about security, including who the actors are, the purposes for using military force, and how best to deal with them. The course will give an introduction to the alternative theories explaining why actors engage in international peace and stabilisation operations. The course will discuss international terrorism and insurgencies, and the protection of civilians, as two important drivers of contemporary military operations. Additionally, the course looks into different types of military operations – UN operations, counter-regime operations, counter-insurgencies, military assistance operations, and cyber operations – in order to highlight their key characteristics.

Learning outcome

Knowledge

Students will:

  • Learn about theories relevant both for analysing the reasons for operations and for why nations take part.
  • Learn about the key characteristics of different types of operations – UN operations, counter-regime operations, counter-insurgencies, military assistance operations, and cyber operations – in order to highlight their differences.
  • Obtain an understanding about the strengths and weaknesses of military and non-military instruments of power.
  • Be given an overview of how international military operations may change in the future.

Skills

Students will:

  • Enhance their capabilities to evaluate the legitimacy and efficiency relating the use of force and civil-military relations.
  • Be able to analyse and discuss dimensions and challenges related to different types of international military operations.

Competence

Students will:

  •  Enhance their capabilities to analyse the challenges relating to the use of force in an international politics.
  •  Acquire an understanding about the strengths and weaknesses of military and non-military instruments of power, and to spur their thinking about how these  may be reconciled.

Admission

Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.

If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.

Prerequisites

Formal prerequisite knowledge

No obligatory prerequisites beyond the minimum requirements for entrance to higher education in Norway.

Overlapping courses

10 credits overlap with STV1240 – International military operations (discontinued)

Teaching

The teaching will be in the form of ten lectures throughout the semester.

Examination

A four hour written exam.

Previous exams.

Examination support material

Students may use dictionaries at this exam. Dictionaries must be handed in before the examination. Please read regulations for dictionaries permitted at the examination.

You must familiarize yourself with the rules that apply to exam support materials and the use of sources and citation. If you violate the rules, you may be suspected of cheating or attempted cheating.

Language of examination

The four hour written exam will be given in English only. The students can choose whether they will answer the exam questions in English, Norwegian, Swedish or Danish.

Grading scale

Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.

Explanations and appeals

Resit an examination

Special examination arrangements

Application form, deadline and requirements for special examination arrangements.

Evaluation

The course is subject to continuous evaluation. At regular intervals we also ask students to participate in a more comprehensive evaluation.

Facts about this course

Credits
10
Level
Bachelor
Teaching
Autumn 2014
Examination
Autumn 2014
Teaching language
English

Contact

SV-info