Connections

Contents

Foreword

Conditionality and Compliance: The Shaky Dimensions of NATO Influence (The Georgian Case)

Solving the Syrian Knot: Dynamics within the UN Security Council and Challenges to its Effectiveness

The Waning Grand Strategy of Democratization: Why a Pivot to the Asia-Pacific Places the United States at Greater Risk of Terrorist Attack

Defense Policy and Reforms in Bulgaria since the End of the Cold War: A Critical Analysis

The Future of the Sinai Peninsula

The Models of Sovereignty in the South Caucasus

Afghanistan 2001–2014: The Enduring Literature?

The Mole and the Mallet: Islamic State and al-Qaeda in the ‘Thirty Years' War’ in the Middle East
by

This article investigates the developments of al-Qaida and The Islamic State in the context of the war on terror. The Iraq war 2003–2010, including the US Counterinsurgency strategy implemented in Iraq in 2007 onwards, together with the political developments in Iraq after the US withdrawal of combat troops at the end of 2011 is seen as the breeding ground for Islamic State in Iraq and thus for establishment of the Nusra Front (al-Qaida) in Syria. The chapter argues that without political developments based on reliable states in the Arab Middle East there is no solution in sight for ending the conflicts and wars in the region.

Previous Issue

Two of the papers in the Fall 2013 issue of Connections look into the legitimacy in the use of force in cyber space in three recent cyber attacks and the engagement between NATO/U.S. and Russia in the cyber domain. Another article treats the dilemma of transparency vs. confidentiality in the oversight of security agencies and the experience with pa... Read More

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