IRL388 – Advanced Studies in International Relations

This course deals with a unique figure in world politics: the Secretary-General of the United Nations. At once civil servant, diplomat, executor of the wishes of the Security Council, and commander-in-chief of tens of thousands of peacekeepers, the UN Secretary-General depends on the member states of the Organization both in terms of legitimacy and in relation to the financial and legal resources needed to ‘do the job’.

This course will consider the complex factors – historical, legal, political, and normative – that have contributed to shape the role of the world’s top diplomat. It will do so by reviewing how the Secretaries-General of the past exercised their functions and by considering their relations with the UN Security Council. The tension between the two roles of the Secretary-General – the ‘secretary’ and the ‘general’ – is central to this theme.

The course will highlight the unique moral authority of the Secretary-General, as well as the unique challenges that each holder encountered during their often tumultuous mandates. We will also ask if (and why) SGs carry more authority than national leaders. By the end of the course, students should be able to:

1. Understand the role(s) of the UN Secretary-General in world politics;
2. Appreciate the uniqueness of the UN Secretary-General’s position;
3. Understand how past Secretaries-General handled major crises;
4. Compare the prerogatives of the UN Secretary-General with those of national leaders;
5. Reflect on the meaning of leadership in international organizations;
6. Understand the differences between domestic and international leadership.