Publication

This paper focuses on asymmetric warfare and the disproportionate impact "minor players" or non-state actors have now. This impact, the text’s author argues, is largely attributable to a lack of political will by the US and its allies, which has manifested itself in an unwillingness to deploy the full range of their powers against threats such as the so-called Islamic State. Indeed, to end the extremist political violence now being directed against the West, it needs to 1) identify the key national interests of countries that are harboring and supporting extremist groups; 2) curtail the usefulness of these groups to these countries, ideally via diplomacy; 3) recognize that behind almost every extremist attack there’s a state providing covert assistance; and 4) encourage media agencies to impose greater self-discipline on themselves, given that extremist groups thrive on the publicity their operations garner.