Ethno-nationalism, Islam and the State in the Caucasus Post-soviet Disorder

The region of the Caucasus with its ongoing, and even deteriorating, crises and instability, and its strategic and economic importance, is increasingly at the focus of the world's attention. A staggering mosaic of ethnic groups, languages and religions going through the pains of post-Soviet transformation, the Caucasus is too often referred to in the simplistic framework of the 'clash of civilisations' or even as a struggle between 'civilisation' and 'Islamic terrorism'. This volume presents and discusses some of these complexities and facets of the interplay among different brands of Islam, nationalisms, ethnic identities, local bureaucracies, Moscow's policies and influences from the outside. Scholars from different disciplines who specialise in the Caucasus analyse inter alia discussions of grass root perceptions, the influence of informal power structures on ethnic conflicts in then Caucasus, Russian policies towards Islam and their destabilising influence, the influence of Islamic revival on the legal and social situations, nationalism and the revival of pre- and sub-national identities, shifts in identity as reflected in demography, the reasons for the Chechen victory in the first Chechen war, and the involvement of Muslim volunteers in Chechnya. This book fills the gap for reliable information on the Caucasus.Gammer, Moshe is the author of 'Ethno-nationalism, Islam and the State in the Caucasus Post-soviet Disorder', published 2007 under ISBN 9780415423458 and ISBN 0415423457.