Handbook

We live in a rules-based international order. Have you ever wanted to know how states resolve territorial disputes or justify the use of force? What is a war crime and how do the laws of armed conflict function in operational and strategic contexts? What happens to the legitimacy of states and military actors when these laws are violated or ignored?

Drawing upon contemporary geopolitical examples such as Iraq, the South China Sea and Ukraine, Module 1 combines legal and political analysis to develop a critical understanding of territorial disputes and arguments justifying the use of force. Module 2 demonstrates how the laws of armed conflict are applied to complex operational examples. Module 3 evaluates broader strategic and legitimacy challenges raised by new forms of conflict and military technology.

Tailored actionable formative feedback is provided throughout the course and used to scaffold your final ePortofolio assignment. This final assignment will culminate in a strategic appraisal of an authentic command problem and a short reflective analysis utilising creative interactive audio/visual communication tools such as VoiceThread to draw upon any element of the course.