The Rise of ISIS： Impacts and Future

ISIS： The Backbone of International Terrorist Forces Since June 2014, the extremist terrorist group known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant （ISIL or ISIS） has expanded quickly and seized significant territory in Iraq and Syria. It not only threatens the very existence of the Iraqi government, but also has changed the nature of the Syria conflict, and its influence is spilling over outside of the region.     

Amid Turmoil,the Middle East Is Reshaping

Turmoil in Iraq reached a new level when ISIL seized Mosul after the Iraq security force collapsed on June 10.Although ISIL,the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant,took over Fallujah in early 2014,this latest development has deeper repercussions.On June 29,ISIL declared a large territory between Iraq and Syria a new state.The leader,a Baghdadi who is wanted by the U.S.,was appointed as caliph.Together with the situation in Syria,the whole region is in tumult and remapping of borders is threatened.The Iraq government is fighting back with limited gains while the international community reacts with only noisy discussions.     

Characteristics of the ＂Islamic State＂

The extreme organization that calls itself the ＂Islamic State＂ has alarmed the world with its rapid rise and grave damage while drawing sharp censure from numerous directions. In his speech on the strategy of dismantling the ＂Islamic State of Iraq and Syria,＂ American President Barak Obama＇ s called it ＂a terrorist organization, pure and simple.＂ 1 Rooted in Middle East turmoil, facilitated by the irresponsible policies of the great powers and nearby countries, the ＂Islamic State＂ （also known as ISIS or ISIL） stands out from among regional terrorist organizations in a number of vital characteristics. ISIS, disowned by the A1-Qaeda, nevertheless challenges it and seems to gain the upper hand. What lies behind its success are at least two powerful characteristics： its religio-political ambition to establish a recognizable country, and its ability to entice the zeal of Western jihadists.     

The Rise of ISIL and Emerging Problems Facing Global Anti-Terrorism Efforts

Editor＇s Note： The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant （ISIL）, a religious fundamentalist organization, first appeared in the Middle East in June 2012. The group declared their intention to create an Islamic State, grabbing the world＇s attention. The U.S. and Europe swiftly re-established an anti-terror coalition and took military action against ISIL. How would such an Islamic State look？ And how will the international community work together to prevent it？ This journal invited several experts on the Middle East in an attempt to answer these questions. The following are the main viewpoints.     

China and the Changing International Order

from the beginning of 2014, the international order has undergone some quite dramatic changes in several parts of the world. The Ukrainianpolitical crisis has gradually evolved into a U.S.-Russia confrontation two decades after the end of the Cold War. In the Middle East, the extremist group, the Islamic State of Iraq and Al Sham （ISIS） invaded Iraq, gaining much territory in the north of the country.     

The Impact of Islamic State on U.S.Middle Eastern Strategy

On September 10, 2014, U.S. President Barack Obama announced a new strategy for fighting the extremist group, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham （ISIL）.1 It is generally considered that this marks a major turn in US＇ Middle Eastern strategy, and observers have commented that the U.S. may have got itself once again ＂mired in the Middle East＂. How can we accurately assess U.S. Middle Eastern strategy？ And how should we read Obama＇s ＂anti-terror New Deal＂？ This paper tries to answer these questions as well as analyze the U.S.＇ overall American Middle Eastern strategy.     

Global Politics: The Middle East Remains the Darkest Place in 2015

Over the past four years,political changes in the Middle East have always appeared to be unexpected and dazzling.Anti-government"Arab Spring"movements against strongman politics broke out in 2011;political Islam gained power through elections in Tunisia and Egypt in2012;an Egyptian military coup occurred in 2013;and in 2014 the"Islamic State"sprung up in Iraq and Syria.All these seemingly irrational episodes in fact share an inherent logical relationship.Looking ahead to2015,there is no end in sight to the military conflicts currently rife in the Middle East.This includes civil wars such as those in Iraq,Syria,and Libya,and the Yemen and Israeli-Palestinian conflicts.There is no hope for     

Disintegration and Remodeling of the Islamic World by Western International Order

Irreparable consequences to Middle East geopolitics ensued as the political systems in the Islamic world declined in a process that began under the persistent infiltration and influence of the Western ideal of nation-state.Three progressive stages in this conceptual transformation show how longstanding multinational imperial systems in the Islamic world disintegrated after the introduction of uone nation,one staten forced upon Middle East states an unrealistic model and eroded the principle of supremacy of sovereignty that had just been established.Interventionist theories that took hold meant that the Islamic world's self-transformation has never caught up with the demand of Western strategies.The Islamic realm has failed to achieve what it set out to do because political systems that would have been adaptive to the reality of the Islamic world had collapsed.     

ABSTRACTS

The rise of extremist organizations of ＂Islamic State＂ has complicated reasons and background, which has exerted great shock and impact on the situation in the Middle East： leading to the realignment of the political landscape and regional order in the Middle East; resulting in the adjustment of foreign policies and external strategies of the related nations; boosting the religious, power and ideological contentions in the region; and making terrorist operations enter a new and active phase. On the whole, there is a great variable in the future development of the Middle East situation, which though will be largely determined by the following three factors, namely what kind of role the big powers outside the region will play, what kind of influence the powers within the region will exert and whether or not the expansion of ＂Islamic States＂ will be effectively controlled.     

U.S. Strategic Predicament in Iraq

The Iraq war is the biggest experimental site of Bushism and the success or failure of the war there has a direct bearing on the spread of Bushism as a strategic model. Hence it is necessary to make a systematic assessment of America's situation in Iraq. The current situation shows that the United has got into an unprecedented strategic haziness. In the security field, U.S. forces have dispatched large number of troops to carry out suppression and won frequent victories,but they are suffering stronger resistances. In the realm of political reconstruction, the democratic process in Iraq is now under in accordance with the prescribed order, but religious contradictions are on the rise, and political structures become more fragile. Over economic reconstruction, the United States has kept increasing input and at the same time appealed to the international community for more assistance. Even though Iraq is faced with difficulties in the reconstruction. Therefore, there is a widening disagreement in America over "whether the U.S. is winning or losing the war in Iraq. "① Based on the major views of experts and scholars from both China and overseas,the author thinks that the following three criteria are important for judging whether the United States has succeeded or failed in pursuing its strategy in Iraq: the feasibility of strategic objectives, balance of objectives and means and adaptability of strategic means. Judged by the above-mentioned criteria, the United States is now landing in a strategic predicament in Iraq.     

恐怖主义新动向与国际反恐合作（英文）

正International terrorism started a new trend in 2015,in which the"Islamic State"(IS)became the most dangerous international terrorist group with continually expanding cross-regional influence.IS has won massive submission and worship from a large number of terrorist groups as it successfully withstood the air strikes by the US and Russia,which finally affected the realignment,regrouping and strategic adjustment of the     

Islamic State in Focus

Islamic State has rapidly become a new threat to the international community.It is now staging terrorist attacks in a long list of Western countries including Canada,Australia and France.Compared to Al Qaeda,Islamic State is characterized by the following:1)Its ultimate goal is to find Utopia.This attracts jihadists from around the world;they are following a call to settle the historical feud between Islam and Christianity.It is also stirring up sectional strife between Sunnis and Shiites.Its demagogy has thus far recruited 15,000Jihadists from over 80 countries;2)It has been competing with Al-Qaeda in trying to launch terrorist     

Iraq War and Principal contradictions in World Politics

Nobody denies that the Iraq war launched by America is a local war that is of global influence and beyond the anti-terror campaign. The various contentions among major world political powers before and after the war reveal that the world strategic structure that is changing since the end of the Cold War has gone through another grave impact after the 9/11 events. The paper does not want to make an in-depth     

伊拉克和黎凡特伊斯兰国

2014年6月10日以来，中东暴恐组织伊拉克和黎凡特伊斯兰国（Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant，ISIL）或伊拉克和沙姆伊斯兰国（Islamic State of Iraqand Al-Sham，ISIS）以势如破竹之势，迅速攻克伊拉克第二大城市摩苏尔和提克里特等伊北部大片地区。     

U. S. Foreign Policy Trend

Wang: We have discussed issues concerning the influence of "overthrowing Saddam" at the regional level and its trend. Next, it is necessary for us to go deeper and discuss it at the global level. It is very clear that "striking Iraq," "overthrowing Saddam," and "transforming     

Impacts of Neo-Conservatism

Before and after the Iraq war, one of the most salient changes in U. S. political and diplomatic arena is the dramatic emergence of neoconservatism. It has become one of the most important factors that affect the tendency of U. S. global strategy.     

The Influence of the Changes in Social Trends of Thought in Japan

The social trend of thought is the trend of thought that is of extensive influence formed in a certain period of time in a given society. It o-riginates from the changes in international environment and domestic social situation, reflecting the interests and demands of a given group of people and producing a great influence on the foreign and domestic policies and the future trend of the society. One prominent feature of the     

The Changes of the U. S. and the Constraints It Facing

The war in Iraq is coming to an end, and the military actions are giving place to the reconstructions of that country's political, economic and social systems. This war marks a major event in international rela     

Looking at U.S.Int''l Status in the Perspective of Its Inner Institution

America's international status is the key factor that determines the overall international structure. This is an old as well as a new topic in the academia of international relations. The Iraq war in 2003 reveals America's strong points and weak points as well.     

Multi,polarization and the ＂Strategic Partnership＂ of the Big Powers

The international financial crisis has brought about major turbulence in the political arena of the world. The world is in a transition period. The trend of multi-polarization is dynamic and moves along the changes in the balance of international forces. An apparent feature in the recent ten years is that the strength and international influence of the sole super power--the US is comparatively decreasing. The international pattern that is developing in depth has led to contradictions and frictions of various kinds, especially the political and economic problems among the big powers and between the existing powers and the emerging powers. However,