Russia S Islamic Threat

Why contemporary Russia is a dangerous seedbed for radicalized Islam and what we should be doing about it The notion that the Chechen-led jihad in the North Caucasus is an indigenous affair, far removed from the global Islamist jihad, is perhaps comforting to Americans and other Westerners, but it is a myth. Moreover, the North Caucasus jihad may be the harbinger of a much larger Muslim challenge to Russia's political stability and state integrity. So concludes Gordon M. Hahn in this meticulously researched analysis of Russia's emerging Islamic threat. Hahn draws an explicit picture of an already sophisticated and effective Chechen jihadist network that is expanding the territorial scope of its operations with inspiration and some assistance from the global jihadist movement. Given its proximity to large stockpiles of diverse weapons, the expanding population of Russian-based Islamist terrorists is particular cause for alarm, the author warns. The book lifts the veil on the Muslim challenge to Russia's political stability, national security, and state integrity as well as the potentially grave threat to international and U.S. security. Hahn shows that many of the demographic, historical, socioeconomic, political, and religious factors sparking jihadi revolution in Muslim countries are extant in Russia and are driving revolutionary Islamist terrorism there. In a penetrating conclusion to the book, the author analyzes the policies that have fueled the rise of militant Islam and offers a series of important recommendations for policymakers.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, both the Russian state and Russia's Muslim communities have struggled to find a new modus vivendi in a rapidly changing domestic and international socio-political context. At the same time as Islamic religious belief and practice have flourished, the state has become increasingly concerned about the security implications of this religious revival, reflecting and responding to a more general international concern over radicalised political Islam. This book examines contemporary developments in Russian politics, how they impact on Russia's Muslim communities, how these communities are helping to shape the Russian state, and what insights this provides to the nature and identity of the Russian state both in its inward and outward projection. The book provides an up-to-date and broad-ranging analysis of the opportunities and challenges confronting contemporary Muslim communities in Russia that is not confined in scope to Chechnya or the North Caucasus, and which goes beyond simplistic characterisations of Muslims as a 'threat'. Instead, it engages with the role of political Islam in Russia in a nuanced way, sensitive to regional and confessional differences, highlighting Islam's impact on domestic and foreign policy and investigating sources of both radicalisation and de-radicalisation.

The threat of Islamic extremism inside Russia is of great concern and importance to the United States and global security. The fight against violent, radical Islam is one of the major challenges of our time. Islamic terrorists have targeted numerous countries for attack, including the United States and Russia. They have declared war on the modern civilized world. Their barbaric actions in Syria remind us daily of their depravity. They must be stopped and they must be defeated. The future of America, Russia, and of Western civilization depends on that. The lives of millions will be in jeopardy if we don't do what is right today. Given the global nature of this fight, it is in the interests of our national interests to understand the growth of extremism in other parts of the world and in other countries, such as Russia. It is alarming to read reports of Muslims living in peaceful and in free democratic countries being attracted or recruited into radical Islamic terrorism. This frightening reality is happening in Europe and elsewhere. Media reports indicate that over 2,000 Russian-born fighters may have traveled to the Middle East to join ISIL. Extremist forces continue to plot attacks against both the United States and Russia. If we work together, we will be better able to protect our people, stop attacks, and kill violent terrorists.

This book offers a novel interpretation of Russian contemporary discourse on Islam and its influence on Russian state policies. It shifts the analytical perspective from the discussion about Russia's Islam as a potential security threat to a more comprehensive view of the relationships of Muslims with Russia as a state and a civilization. The work demonstrates how many Muslims increasingly express a sense of belonging to Russia and are increasingly willing to contribute to state building processes.

This richly detailed study traces the shared history of Russia and Islam in expanding compass - from the Tatar civilization within the Russian heartland, to the conquered territories of the Caucasus and Central Asia, to the larger geopolitical and security context of contemporary Russia on the civilizational divide. The study's distinctive analytical drive stresses political and geopolitical relationships over time and into the very complicated present. Rich with insight, the book is also an incomparable source of factual information about Russia's Muslim populations, religious institutions, political organizations, and ideological movements.

During the Soviet period, Islam was largely ignored in Moscow and viewed as a bourgeois phenomenon which would fade over time. Nowadays, from the ongoing conflict in Chechnya to recent upheavals in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, Islamic militancy has become a major security threat to Russia. Mike Bowker examines the newly emerging relationship between Russia and the United States and their struggle against the common threat of international terrorism. He looks at the difficulties of such a relationship by analyzing the lingering mutual suspicion, differing views on the nature of the global terrorist threat and how each side has continued to pursue their own national interests. Students and scholars of international relations and Russian foreign policy will find this book particularly useful.

First published in 1983, this book traces the historical and cultural development of the Soviet Muslim population. Going back to the Mongol Empire and the Russian conquest of Muslim lands under the Tsars, it demonstrates how the present Soviet Islamic culture has emerged. It also examines how Soviet Muslims interact with the Muslim world abroad and how Soviet Muftis have been used as ambassadors of the USSR in Muslim countries.

The three papers offered in this monograph provide a detailed analysis of the insurgency and counterinsurgency campaigns being conducted by Islamist rebels against Russia in the North Caucasus. This conflict is Russia's primary security threat, but it has barely registered on Western minds and is hardly reported in the West as well. To overcome this neglect, these three papers go into great detail concerning the nature of the Islamist challenge, the Russian response, and the implications of this conflict. This monograph, in keeping with SSI's objectives, provides a basis for dialogue among U.S., European, and Russian experts concerning insurgency and counterinsurgency, which will certainly prove useful to all of these nations, since they will continue to be challenged by such wars well into the future. It is important for us to learn from the insurgency in the North Caucasus, because the issues raised by this conflict will not easily go away, even for the United States as it leaves Afghanistan.