For many decades, the United States has been militarily the most powerful state in the world. The rise of China and increasing defence spending in Europe, together with failures (or at least debatable successes) of the Global War on Terror, increasingly lead some to question the degree of the US military supremacy. Nonetheless, US military power remains one of the cornerstones of global international order, a crucial domestic institution and one of the largest organisations in the world. Despite (or maybe because of) its indispensability and recognised superiority, the power of the US military is often treated more as a magical deus ex machina defeating all enemies by its mere appearance. This course aims to provide students with a brief but comprehensive introduction to US military power, providing historical background, its sources and its role in domestic and global contexts.
- Teacher: Vojtěch Bahenský