EDITORIAL

Marina Eleftheriadou (Ph.D)
(Research Associate/ Senior Editor, Centre for Mediterranean, Middle East & Islamic Studies (CEMMIS)

Copyright: Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 21 April 2015

The power struggle within the salafi-jihadist movement continues to stir the 'jihadsphere'. Al-Baghdadi's open challenge to the salafi-jihadi status quo peaked with his June 2014 claim to the Caliphate, which further gnawed the failing power of al-Qaeda that until recently was the dominant power in the salafi-jihadi sub-system. ISIS' recent attempts towards 'remaining and expanding' beyond the Syria-Iraq front, as its strategic design dictates, constitute a further escalation of the intra-jihadi power struggle that directly challenges al-Qaeda's unipolar claim to jihadi branding and franchise. The flurry of declarations of support and bay'ah (to al-Zawahiri or al-Baghdadi) has been dichotomizing the salafi-jihadi movement between loyal to al-Qaeda forces and the 'defectors' to the self-proclaimed Islamic State; thus, sealing the increasing bipolarity in the jihadi sub-system...Read more

RIAC asked RIEAS Editorial Team to comment on purposes and the results of Tsipras' visit to Moscow.

On April 8-9, 2015 Greek Prime-Minister visited Russia. Mr. Tsipras' decision to conduct talks with President Putin caused anxiety and concern in the EU and among Greek opposition. International relations, it is often said, resemble a game of chess. A good chess player should strive to be ahead of his opponent by a move or two at all times. By visiting Moscow shortly after he decisively won a general election on January 25, 2015, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has obviously borrowed a leaf out of a good chess player's book... Read more

Tassos Symeonides
(RIEAS Academic Advisor based in Seattle, USA)

Copyright: Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas)
Publication date on 5 April 2015

The Greek prime minister, Alexis Tsipras, is caught in an impossible situation. Pressed to exhaustion by Greece's lenders, he needs to wiggle his way between a rock and an hard place: ensuring that Greece somehow financially hobbles along under a rain of blows from her EU «partners» while all the while discovering avenues of trying to deal with the enormous humanitarian crisis the country faces because of the «bailouts.»..Read more

Claudiu-Nicolae Sonda
(Postgraduate student in the M.A. Program - the International and European Relations-in the Linkoping University, Sweden)

Copyright: Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 4 April 2015

No discussion over the Black Sea region can be complete without referring to the energy field, more specifically oil and gas resources, pipelines, and transit routes. The energy sector is crucial not only in economic terms, but also for security. By security we mean energy security, defined as 'the uninterrupted availability of energy sources at an affordable price'. Furthermore, we are talking about security in traditional terms, mainly the danger of inter-state conflict over the control /access to natural resources...Read more

Ioannis Mantzikos
(RIEAS Senior Analyst)

Copyright: Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 29 March 2015)

Elections have always been high-stakes affairs in Nigeria but the build-up to the 2015 elections has been accompanied by unprecedented levels of tension and anxiety. Two closely matched parties—the People's Democratic Party (PDP) of President Goodluck Jonathan and the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) led by General Muhammadu Buhari—appear confident of securing victory. The national elections in 2011 accelerated the general northern alienation from the Abuja government that feeds Boko Haram...Read more

Georgios Tsichritzis
(Postgraduate Student, Intelligence and Security Studies,Brunel University, UK)

Copyright: Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication Date: 23 March 2015

This article examines in what degree, the conduct of intelligence by paramilitary groups resemble or differ from national intelligence. Paramilitary is a militarised force whose function, is similar to a professional military but is not considered part of a state's formal armed forces. Specifically, this essay will focus on terrorist intelligence. It will trace different terrorist groups, examining the basic rational and doctrine that precedes its operational actions. The article will prove that the level of sophistication and meticulously planning of operations of a lot of sub-state groups can be compared with this of their state counterparts. While some "hostile reconnaissance" is amateurish, and easily detected, a significant amount is professional and very difficult to detect. It seems that a lot of sub state actors have learned that in order for an operation to be successful, good intelligence plays a vital role. The article will analyse and explore the doctrine, intentions and organization of well-known terrorist and paramilitary groups: Al-Qaeda, Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), (Irish Republican Army) IRA, and Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC)...Read more