Jan Ruzicka
Lecturer in Security Studies
BA Charles University Prague
MA Brandeis University; Central European University
PhD University of Wales, Aberystwyth
Contact
Email: jlr@aber.ac.uk
Phone: +44 (0)1970 628673
Fax: +44 (0)1970 622709
Office: 3.15
Profile
Jan Ruzicka was appointed as Lecturer in Security Studies in August 2011. Previously, he worked in the Department as research assistant for the project ‘The Challenges to Trust-Building in Nuclear Worlds’. From 2006 to 2009 he was Marie Curie doctoral fellow in the Department, where he defended his thesis in 2010. The thesis combined a theoretical critique of securitization theory with historical case studies of the French and Russian revolutions. Prior to coming to Aberystwyth, he served as the chief aide to a ranking member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence, and Security of the Senate of the Czech Republic from 2004 to 2006. A graduate of Charles University in Prague, he received his MA degrees in politics at Brandeis University (Fulbright Scholarship) and in international relations at Central European University (Soros Foundation Scholarship).
Research
Jan’s research interests can broadly be divided into three main areas: security studies; international relations theory; and area studies with emphasis on Central Europe. In security studies his research focuses on theories of security, the relationship between politics and security, nuclear weapons and emerging security threats. Jan’s recent work in international relations theory concentrates on the problem of theorizing trust at the international level. He has developed the concept of trusting relationship (in articles with Nick Wheeler) and currently works on anchoring the concept in a more general theory of international politics. Finally, he has had a long-standing research interest in area studies. This research has led to several articles on regional politics of Central Europe.
Teaching Areas
Masters
IPM1230 Critical Security Studies: Emerging Issues
IPM2230 Fear, Cooperation and Trust in World Politics
Undergraduate
IP30320 War, Politics and Strategy (in 2011-12)
PhD Supervision
Security Studies
International Relations Theory
Staff Publications
Key Publications
Jan Ruzicka and Nicholas J. Wheeler, ‘The Puzzle of Trusting Relationships in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty,’ International Affairs, Vol. 86, No. 1, January 2010, pp. 69-85.
Jan Ruzicka, ‘From Eastern Europe to Central Europe and Back?: On Regions, Transatlantic Relations, and Central Europe,’ Perspectives, Vol. 18, No. 2, 2010, pp. 63-78.
Jan Ruzicka, ‘Reflections on the 2010 NPT Review Conference,’ Medicine, Conflict and Survival, Vol. 26, No. 4, October-December 2010, pp. 259-267.
Jan Ruzicka and Nicholas J. Wheeler, ‘Decisions to Trust: Maintaining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Regime,’ RUSI Journal, Vol. 155, No. 2, April 2010, pp. 20-25.
Petr Drulák, Michal Kořan, Jan Ruzicka, ‘Aussenpolitik in Ostmitteleuropa: Von Universalisten, Atlantikern, Europäern und Souveränisten,’ Osteuropa, Vol. 58, No. 7, 2008, pp. 139-152.