I had a long talk with my Intro to IR students about Russia.

Was it because of current events? Partially.

But it was mostly because, when it comes to studying international security, Russia seems to always be at the center.

[THREAD]
IR scholars think they are crafting broadly general theories of state behavior. Take Waltz's discussion of war in his 1956 book
He wrote...
Sounds pretty general, right? But think about some of the major wars of the past 200 years that influence our thinking about international politics....
The Napoleonic wars, namely Napoleon's biggest defeat...
The Napoleonic wars, namely Napoleon's biggest defeat...
The Napoleonic wars, namely Napoleon's biggest defeat...
...the Crimean War...
...the Crimean War...
...the Crimean War...
...the 1914 July Crisis and World War I...
...the 1914 July Crisis and World War I...
...the 1914 July Crisis and World War I...
....and World War II, especially Operation Barbarossa and the Nazi-Soviet war (or the Great Patriotic War, depending on where you are from).
....and World War II, especially Operation Barbarossa and the Nazi-Soviet war (or the Great Patriotic War, depending on where you are from).
....and World War II, especially Operation Barbarossa and the Nazi-Soviet war (or the Great Patriotic War, depending on where you are from).
....and World War II, especially Operation Barbarossa and the Nazi-Soviet war (or the Great Patriotic War, depending on where you are from).
Or think of the major military competition that consumed much of the mid-to-late 20th Century: the Cold War.
Or think of the major military competition that consumed much of the mid-to-late 20th Century: the Cold War.
Or think of the major military competition that consumed much of the mid-to-late 20th Century: the Cold War.
Or think of the major military competition that consumed much of the mid-to-late 20th Century: the Cold War.
Or go back and think about the British Empire's worst military defeat: in Afghanistan. Why were the British there?
Or go back and think about the British Empire's worst military defeat: in Afghanistan. Why were the British there?
Or go back and think about the British Empire's worst military defeat: in Afghanistan. Why were the British there?
The common actor in all of these events? Russia.
From Ukraine to Syria, the same could be said of today
From Ukraine to Syria, the same could be said of today
From Ukraine to Syria, the same could be said of today
Or think about the aftermath of the Berlin Wall's collapse. The one decade -- the 1990s -- where Russia is no longer viewed as a major security threat is also the time when people spoke of an "End of History"
Or think about the aftermath of the Berlin Wall's collapse. The one decade -- the 1990s -- where Russia is no longer viewed as a major security threat is also the time when people spoke of an "End of History"
Or think about the aftermath of the Berlin Wall's collapse. The one decade -- the 1990s -- where Russia is no longer viewed as a major security threat is also the time when people spoke of an "End of History"
Heck, even when @Jeopardy wants to have a question on international disputes, Russia is involved.
Heck, even when @Jeopardy wants to have a question on international disputes, Russia is involved.
Heck, even when @Jeopardy wants to have a question on international disputes, Russia is involved.
Heck, even when @Jeopardy wants to have a question on international disputes, Russia is involved.
In short, the major wars that influence our thinking about international security involved Russia.

So are IR scholars studying why states fight war, or are we simply explaining Russia's foreign policy & reactions to Russia's foreign policy?
Stated differently, should 👇have been the title to Waltz's book?
To further see Russia's influence, consider Russia's relative prevalence in our security data.
🇺🇸 is involved in just under 6 percent of the wars in the Correlates of War Militarized Interstate Dispute dataset. That makes 🇺🇸 only the 2nd most frequent war participant. #1? 👇
Related, notice Russia's dominance in our Alliance data (something that jumped out at me when writing my recent book).
Why is Russia so prevalent in the wars we study? Could be a host of explanations, but the most likely might be Size: Lost of borders -> Ease power projection https://twitter.com/ProfPaulPoast/status/1192582253282545664
Keep in mind, none of this goes against the recent @Journal_of_GSS special issue on "American bias in International Relations." https://academic.oup.com/jogss/article-abstract/4/3/299/5521930?redirectedFrom=fulltext
Special Issue on “American Bias”

This JoGSS special issue centers on a particularly important concern in global security studies: American bias. Put together by guest editor Jeff Colgan, the is

https://academic.oup.com/jogss/article-abstract/4/3/299/5521930?redirectedFrom=fulltext
Instead, it reinforces the point of the special issue. After all, which country was and events were on the minds of American scholars during the formative post-1945 years of IR's development? 🤔
A lot more to say about this topic. But my students reacted to this lecture with 🤯

In sum, are we scholars of "international relations" or just "Russian foreign policy"?

Something to think about 🤔

[END]
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