The specialization combines ideas, skills, and practices for effective twenty-first century diplomacy, conflict management, and engagement in international development work. Students are encouraged to explore the great transformations currently shaping the global order and to develop the understanding, vision, and tools necessary to become leaders in addressing those transformations. The specialization provides students with unique opportunities to analyze how international conflicts emerge and evolve, and how they can be managed through negotiation, mediation, and peace building. By gaining knowledge and tools, students will be better equipped to address emerging trends in international diplomacy (including public diplomacy), conflict management, and the range of complex challenges in the globalized world.
MA Government Diplomacy & Conflict Studies
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Head of Program
About the specialization
The program offers two certificate-granting elective clusters:
- Contemporary Middle East Politics, headed by Prof. Shaul Mishal, provides an in-depth exploration of the contemporary dynamics shaping the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
- International Development, Sustainability & Entrepreneurship, headed by Dr. Jennifer Shkabator, seeks to nurture outstanding young leaders and social entrepreneurs interested in leveraging Israeli innovation for the benefit of international development and humanitarian assistance work around the world.
Throughout the program we emphasize the acquisition of practical skills and experience, so that students learn to deal with twenty-first century regional and international challenges. These skills can be acquired through individual internships, research, or policy-oriented work with highly experienced practitioners.
Contemporary Middle East Politics Cluster
Under the direction of Prof. Shaul Mishal the Diplomacy & Conflict Studies program offers an elective concentration in Contemporary Middle East Politics - exploring the region’s turbulent transformation in pursuit of democracy, economic development, as well as its effects on forces born and bred in the region - Islamic fundamentalism, global jihad, and extreme modes of nationalism with a focus on the region from the Arab Spring until today. Throughout the program, we emphasize the acquisition of practical skills and experience - including through individual internships, research and policy-oriented work with highly experienced practitioners - for dealing with twenty-first century regional and international challenges.
Global Impact Studies Cluster
The Global Impact Studies cluster seeks to bridge between Israeli innovations and the needs of developing countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin Amierca which have become a major engine of growth in the global economy and a significant political power in international institutions. The cluster focuses on major global challenges (e.g., clean water, food security, renewable energy, cyber-security, etc.) that face the developing world, and serves as an incubator for global leaders and social innovators, who will learn how to employ Israeli innovations to address these challenges.
Students also participate in a unique workshop, as part of which they meet with key representatives of Israeli government agencies, industry leaders, major civil society organizations, and innovative research institutions that work with emerging markets. They participate in several study tours and field visits, and also take part in "cultural literacy" workshops, where they are exposed to the day to day of working in a developing country. Selected students are offered internships in development organizations, government agencies, private corporations, or international NGO's in developing countries.
Specialization with Thesis
Students have the option to apply for the Diplomacy & Conflict Studies Specialization with Thesis.
*Those with career goals in the US armed services, graduates of AF/N/ROTC Programs, or Military Colleges please click here to learn more about the ASL Scholarship.
*To apply for the MA Government Program please click here
What Will You Study?
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Specialization (16 Credits)
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Dr. Terris Lesley
This course surveys and analyzes the practice and theory of mediation in international politics. During the course we will cover the different approaches to the study and practice of mediation within the wider scope of negotiation and bargaining theories, including rational choice, game theory and psychological and cultural approaches. Substantial attention will be devoted to issues of mediator roles and styles, trust issues, and power concerns. Historical mediation cases will be explored and analyzed to illustrate the principles of mediation in inter-state and intrastate disputes and to assess the applicability of the concepts and theories studied.
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Prof. Dmitry Adamsky
The purpose of the course is to provide a basic understanding of nuclear deterrence and its development during the cold war period. The danger of an apocalyptic nuclear war had produced a very extensive body of thinking including concepts and strategies that helped preventing such a war. Some of these concepts have since become more common but sometimes have also been inaccurately used. The relevance of these concepts for the present (and the future) requires careful study of the conditions and constraints under which nuclear deterrence strategies developed during the cold war. The course will start with general introduction to nuclear energy, examine the basics of nuclear deterrence and then cover the relevant development of the main concepts and practical policies concerning nuclear deterrence during that period. The validity of these concepts, analyses and strategy of nuclear deterrence will be examined by studying the development of NATO nuclear policy, a number of international crises with considerable nuclear dimension including the main crisis between India and Pakistan. The course will examine the value and contributions of nuclear arms control treaties, the NPT, and the vision of nuclear free world.
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Dr. Benziman Yuval
Psychological dimensions are a very significant component, some will say the major component, in the formation of conflicts. Conflicts intensify because of the parties' perception of each other, lack of trust between them, difference in their judgement of "reality", and their tendency to distance themselves from each other. Over the years, societies also create an ethos of conflict and a whole repertoire of opinions and attitudes that make the end of the conflict almost impossible because it constitutes a fundamental and essential part of their identity. As a result, even when conflicts can seemingly be resolved, the parties fail to bring themselves to it. Yet on the other hand, it is precisely through changes in perception and understanding of conflicts that parties can be brought together. The ability to change positions and perceptions, the willingness to create a dialogue with the opponent, the willingness to apologize and the attempt to recognize the narrative of the other – are all significant factors that shape the nature of future relations between the parties. The course will present approaches to the understanding of conflicts through the prism of social psychology and how these approaches propose to resolve conflicts. It will be based on theoretical research and examples from various conflicts. Students will be asked to do their own research in this context, which will be a combination of the theories and the study of one test case that they will choose.
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Prof. Asif Efrat
The course examines how states use international law and institutions to prevent, regulate, and punish the use of force. Topics covered include: international rules on the use of force (UN Charter; Geneva Conventions), humanitarian intervention, arms control, alliances, war crimes and international criminal law, peacekeeping, and the war on terror.
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Dr. Emmanuel Navon
"War and Peace" is not only the title of Tolstoy's famous novel: it is a central concern of both the study and practice of international relations. Throughout history, theoreticians and statesmen have searched for the right formula to prevent conflict and to assure stability. The course will explain the philosophical debates and successive international orders that have tried to achieve, by way of trial and error, peace in international relations. It will also explain key strategic aspects of contemporary international relations, such as conflict resolution, disarmament and arms control, international trade and finance, international organizations and NGOs, and the impact of the Internet on modern diplomacy.
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Dr. Terris Lesley
The course covers the major current theoretical and methodological debates taking place in the field of conflict studies. Within this context we will look at the impact of issues such as national security, peace/war economies, natural resources, human rights, and domestic politics on conflict processes. Particular emphasis will be placed upon the methods used to assess these issues in current research and the steps involved in constructing scientific research in the field.
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Prof. Liav Orgad
The horrors of World War II led to the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), whose 30 articles constitute the cornerstone of international human rights law. The seminar includes three parts. The first part discusses the “human rights revolution”—its evolution, theory, justification, internationalization, promises and failures, and effects on world affairs. The second part focuses on some of the most urgent human rights dilemmas of our time: global migration, counter-terrorism measures, minority and majority rights, self-determination, multiculturalism, animal rights, LGBT rights, environmental rights, torture, racial discrimination, populist challenges to human rights, #MeToo, individual responsibility, and transitional justice. The third part examines the future of human rights. Topics that have been the focus of world affairs in the 70 years since the adoption of the UDHR in 1948 are likely to be different in the next 70 years. New technologies—AI, Blockchain, genome editing, and machine learning—remodel the definition of who is “human” and what is “right,” transform basic concepts such as “intent” and “free will,” and conceptualize institutions such as citizenship, state, and the family unit. How human rights might look like in the future—will the defining topics be politically oppressed and marginal communities or rather robot rights, data protection, identity, and privacy?
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Prof. Dmitry Adamsky
The course examines the development of Russian foreign and security policy since the end of the Cold War. We will analyze the historical foundations, intellectual sources, instruments and goals of this policy and the mechanisms of its formulation. The course explores Russian interaction with major actors in the international arena and focuses on the central issues pertaining to the American, European, Asian, Middle Eastern and “Near Abroad” vectors of Russian foreign policy in the last two decades. We will also analyze current Russian conventional and nuclear military modernizations.
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Prof. Ron Prosor
Ever since its inception in 1945, the United Nations played a significant role in international politics. While officially promoting three main goals - maintaining peace and security, promoting social and economic development and promoting human rights, the UN has also become a controversial body, often causing damage to the very same ideals it wishes to promote. With 193 member states, 6 official languages and dozens of offices around the world, the UN is a bureaucratic body, often occupied with proceedings and agendas that leave little time for meaningful, efficient conduct.
Cluster in Contemporary Middle East Politics (12 Credits)
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Prof. Shaul Mishal
The course provides a comprehensive examination of national movements and Islamic trends in the contemporary Middle East. It focuses on the major ideologies and their influences on the geopolitics and sociopolitical developments. The course will present theoretical perspectives to follow visions, environments, preferences and verities of modes of action of states and non-states entities, movements and organizations that play a significant role in shaping the Arab world politics and societies through a process of rapid changes.
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Dr. Ori Goldberg
The Middle East is the cradle of monotheistic religion. Judaism, Christianity and Islam have always maintained a powerful presence in the life of the region. Politics has, in turn, always been integral to the practices of religious faith in the Middle East. We will explore this relationship between faith and politics, focusing mostly on Judaism and Islam over the last 120 years. We will consider the ways in which faith shapes political behavior and vice versa. Most of our work will be based on readings that will be conducted together, in class.
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Prof. Yitzhak Reiter
Jerusalem is a city holy to the world’s three monotheistic religions and lies at the heart of the national and religious narratives of both Israelis and Palestinians. As such, Jerusalem is one of the most sensitive and complex issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As a contested city it is a symbol of the Arab-Israeli conflict that was rendered into a regional issue of a religious war between Islam and Judaism.
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Dr. Amichai Magen
The contemporary international system is in a state of greater flux today than at any time since the end of the Second World War. American hegemony is on the decline and Great Power competition for global and regional influence (by China, Russia, Iran, and Radical Islamist movements) is on the rise. Globalization - which has brought humanity unprecedented benefits and which was until recently assumed to be inevitable - is today seen by many as not only pernicious but reversible. War, which many had thought had been defeated for good, is making a comeback. Economic, environmental, and technological interdependence necessitates that humanity coordinate the management of shared challenges like never before, yet existing international regimes (such as the UN and EU) are increasingly losing their legitimacy. This course invites MA students to explore the origins, evolution, building blocks, and main themes of the modern international system, and to examine whether and how global order could be maintained in the twenty-first century. Throughout the course students will engage with interdisciplinary texts and be encouraged to develop analytical skills.
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Prof. Galia Golan
The Seminar will deal with selected topics in the negotiations for resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, with emphasis on the Israeli-Palestinian aspect. Students will be expected to research two topics and be prepared to discuss each of them in class at the designated times. In addition, students must submit a seminar paper of 15-20 pages on a topic to be chosen in consultation with Prof. Golan. The final grade will be composed of participation 40% and paper 60%.
Cluster in Global Impact Studies (10 Credits)
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Dr. Adi Levi
The interface between the environment, economy and society produces burning issues on the international and local agenda. The course provides an overview of today's most burning sustainability and environmental topics, such as climate change, consumerism (focusing on single use plastic, fast fashion, our choice of food and its environmental impacts), the sixth mass extinction), clean water supply, clean energy production and many more... The course presents and analyzes the emerging conflicts in these fields. Along the course we'll discuss in depth, the players involved, their stance and map of interests and the factors that lead to the collision between them. We'll than recognize the ecosystems that are deeply affected, and discuss the opportunities to implement sustainable development solutions (in the light of UN’s Sustainable Development Goals 2030) to reduce environmental damages while using resources wisely, and also preserving them for future generations. Each topic will be accompanied by case studies that will be discussed in-depth.
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Prof. Liav Orgad
Emerging technologies, characterized the “Fourth Industrial Revolution,” will alter the institution of citizenship and reconceptualize membership and belonging. While the scale of this transformation is unknown, new technologies are already blurring the lines between physical and digital, local and global. Law enforcement agencies employ Artificial Intelligence (AI), data mining, and machine learning to create an algorithmic identity that uses online activity to predict “digital citizenship”; genetic advances expand the understanding of ancestry and migration history—which has been labelled “genetic citizenship”; China and Western states use AI and big data technologies for “citizenship gamification”; blockchain technologies undermine the concept of the state and enable the creation of a decentralized “cloud citizenship”; and although the granting of citizenship by Saudi Arabia to a female Robot named Sophia was a marketing ploy to lure investors, there is a growing body of literature on “robot rights.” Technological advances will change the way people perceive communities and identities, membership and belonging. The course shows that digital citizenship is increasingly gamified, mainly in the context of rights/duties; becoming algorithmic, mostly regarding the identity attached to it; crowded-out and liquidized, primarily in the area of political participation; and virtualized, especially concerning the status of citizenship. It highlights the potential of new technologies to develop a new concept, “global e-citizenship,” and discusses its justifications and limits. Is there a reason to celebrate the changes brought by technology, or are they likely to do more harm than good?
Electives (8 Credits) - All MA-level courses can be taken as an elective, including (selected list):
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Mr. Harel Halevi
The Arabic course for international students is designed for English-speaking students worldwide. It will be conducted in English, and its content will include the fundamentals of reading and writing in Arabic, the development of basic-level speaking skills in Spoken Arabic (Palestinian dialect), the connections between Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) and its various spoken dialects, and acquaintance with Arab culture. The course will adopt a communicative approach, with emphasis on current events, as they find expression in everyday life in Arab society and within the realm of countries and organizations in the Arab world, particularly in the Middle East. Students in the course will learn to communicate at a basic level with an Arabic speaker, and, through "the lens of study of Arabic language and Arab culture," will learn how to view processes taking place in Arab society and the Arab world in an informed and multidimensional manner.
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Itzhak Levanon
Egypt has for centuries been one of the world's central civilization: a country characterized by social tolerance, at the avant-garde of Middle East culture, which also occupies a critically important geostrategic position in the region. This course will examine the political, social, and security challenges Egypt has had to deal with since becoming a modern state. The course will look at the decision-making process of its different rulers, focusing on the nuances between the theoretical and the practical. The course is designed around three central pillars: a look at the country's history, its ideological undercurrents, and expectations for the future. It will look at the causes of the country's social problems and look at the deterioration of the security situation that has led to an emergence of extremism. In addition, it will address what needs to be done to restore stability and efficient government. The lecturer will bring his own first-hand testimony, as an eyewitness to the Egyptian Revolution in 2011 that led to the downfall of The President. The purpose of the course is to provide students with the tools to be able to look at the current developments in the country, conduct a self-analysis and answer one seeming endless question: Whither Egypt?
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Dr. Amichai Magen
This course invites MA students to explore the foundational ideas, institutions, and debates relating to political freedom and responsibility in the 21st century. "Liberty and Responsibility" is the motto of Reichman University, but what does it actually mean to be a free and responsible citizen? What distinguishes between closed order and open order societies? And how should young leaders safeguard freedom and guard against old and new threats to liberal democracy? This course engages with these critical issues, which are essential for both national and international leadership. The course is broadly divided into three parts. In the first third of the semester we will examine key ideas about political freedom, such Benjamin Constant's famous distinction between ancient and modern liberty, and Isiah Berlin's equally famous two concepts of freedom - negative and positive. In the second part of the course we will explore the main characteristics of free and authoritarian societies and political systems. In this context we will talk about whether the state is an instrument of freedom or oppression, about nationalism and cosmopolitanism, equality, legitimacy, trust, democracy, rights, and the rule of law. Finally, in the last part of the semester, we will discuss new threats to human freedom, such as populism, identity politics, surveillance capitalism, and unaligned Artificial Intelligence. Throughout the course we will develop critical thinking, analytical, and debate skills.
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Dr. Shaul Shay
Along the history, there are many examples of "Strategic surprises" (Pearl Harbor, the 1973 war, the collapse of the Soviet Union, the 9\11 attacks). The course deals with the question what are the reasons that Intelligence services and decision makers failed to prevent "Strategic surprises". The course examines the different aspects of strategic surprise and what should be done to cope with the challenges.
The course has three main parts:
- Theoretical background.
- The strategic surprise of the 1973 war.
- The case study of the 9\11 attacks.
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Prof. Assaf Moghadam
This research seminar examines a broad variety of topics relevant to the understanding of contemporary international terrorism, while preparing MA students to write advanced research papers. Students will also present their research topics to the class. The first part of the course offers a historical sketch of international terrorism from the French Revolution onwards. The second part examines the main theoretical approaches for analyzing terrorism. Part three of the course will consist of discussions of some of the most critical policy-relevant topics related to terrorism and counterterrorism, including state-sponsored and homegrown terrorism; the foreign fighter phenomenon; the terror-crime nexus; cyberterrorism; targeted killings; deterrence; and the evolution of the global jihadi threat.
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Dr. Amichai Magen
This Research Seminar invites MA candidates to explore the relationship between governance and political violence. Contemporary global reality is shaped by a fundamental paradox with profound consequences for international peace and security. On the one hand, substantial portions of the world have achieved unprecedented political freedom, economic affluence, and interdependence - creating a virtuous circle of democracy, security, and peace. Yet on the other hand, about a third of the world's states are states whose central government is so weak that they have little practical control over much of its territory; are unable to provide essential public services; are stuck in poverty; and are characterized by widespread conflict, criminality, and corruption. Areas of limited statehood (ALS) - such as are found in Afghanistan, Iraq, Lebanon, Libya, Pakistan, the Sahel Region, Sinai, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen - are not only havens for terrorists, but pose a complex set of security, legal and policy challenges to the international community. Why does so much of contemporary international terrorism emerge from fragile and failed states? How has the proliferation of ALS impacted terrorist organizations and their impact. And what, if anything can be done about it? Can fragile states be transformed? The research seminar challenges MA students to tackle these questions, and to explore the relationship between governance and security, state failure and international terrorism, using interdisciplinary materials and analytic approaches.
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*For the entire list of courses please refer to the Student Handbook
*The academic administration of Reichman University reserves the right to make changes to the curriculum.
A graduate who has completed a thesis and specialization will receive an MA Diploma on which the completion of the thesis and specialization will be noted.