Informace o publikaci
Siła czy przesilenie? Działalność i znaczenie Państwa Islamskiego
| Autoři | |
|---|---|
| Rok publikování | 2020 |
| Druh | Článek v odborném periodiku |
| Časopis / Zdroj | Przegląd Bezpieczeństwa Publicznego |
| Fakulta / Pracoviště MU | |
| Citace | |
| www | |
| Klíčová slova | Islamic State; Caliphate; hard power; soft power; geopolitics; Middle East |
| Přiložené soubory | |
| Popis | After October 2017, a temptation appeared to put the “Islamic State” in the junk of history and to stop pondering about its existence and impact. To the contrary, now the time has come for meticulous analyses and reflections concerning this phenomenon. This article discusses the functioning of IS based on its strength and taking into account its status and goals, allies and territorial coverage, as well as analyzing both hard and soft power of its impact. It is claimed that the strength of PI consisted of the following elements: the complex structure and tactical differences, including well-defined goals of military operations, high morale and training, good command, but also the inclusive nature of the organization. What is more, the Islamic State has shown a great adaptability (various theaters of activities), resistance to losses (human, territorial), the ability to accumulate experiences and an openness to new forms of activity. Furthermore, its inherent strength and the enabling milieu allowed it for achieving a completely new level of military, political, ideological and territorial activities. In the second part of the article, the analysis focuses on the main actors of Middle Eastern events who often used the Caliphate (or the purported struggle against it) as an object of power play to achieve their own particular interests. Specifically, the reflections include local actors (the Arab states, Iran, Turkey) and international (US together with its Western allies and Russia). This comparative analysis allows to determine how high in the hierarchy of their strategic goals the ultimate elimination of the Islamic State could be placed. This is followed by an evaluation of policy effectiveness. The paper concludes that for America and the whole West, the existence and operation of the Islamic State meant the failure of the hitherto policies in the Middle East; for some countries in the region (Iraq, Syria) it was an existential threat, for others a somewhat unpredictable but useful instrument (Saudi Arabia, Qatar), or even (Turkey) a factor whose power can be used for its own purposes. |