International Conference: Current Security Challenges for the Western Balkan Region Addressed by Means of Joint Responsibility and Cooperation KEYNOTE ADDRESSES 1 Udo Steinbach: Locating Islamic extremism By the end of the 1990 Western experts have forecast the decline of political islam. Obviously, they were wrong. The„war on terrorism“ which was waged after the terror attack of September 11th, 2001, did not only did not bring the phenomen to an end. On the contrary, religious violence since, has spread to most parts of the „Islamic world“, and even penetrated muslim segments of Western societies. By 2014, a terrorist organization called„Islamic State“ managed to set up a Jihadi state on parts of the territories of Iraq and Syria headed by a self­declared„caliph“. Waging war against everybody not being seen as a truly sunni believer, it is supported by a bunch of considerably numerous fellow travelers from many parts even of Europe including the Western Balkan countries. So, when dealing with the movement, one has to understand, where are its roots and what were the reasons why it so„successfully“ withstood the efforts of the international community to come to grips with. Six observations may be put forward: 1). The phenomenon of political Islam is deeply„correct consciousness“. Those who belonged rooted in the ideological and political history not to the avantgarde were legitimized to take action 8 only of the Middle East and the Islamic world at large, but of Europe as well. The 20th century in in order to transform the society into its nal stage, the classless society. To use violance in Europe has been called the„century of order to achieve this was not only legitimate, but ideologies“ referring primarily to fascism, necessary in case resistance had to be national socialism and communism. In fact, it overcome on this way. The bloody history of has an equivalent in the Middle East: islamism Marxism-Leninism from the very rst day in (to frame it from a European perception). When Sankt Peterburg(1917) until the death of Stalin the First World War ended, the traditional order (1953) illustrates what it has meant. legitimized throughout history had been destroyed; new legitimizing frameworks for political orders had to be found. In Europe, The elites in the Middle East and beyond in the nationalism and communism seemed to be Islamic world were not radical to such an extent. most appropriate to give the people a new sense Nationalism became a guiding force with of orientation and the state its legitimacy. While respect to the new post-Ottoman order; but the „fascism“ and„national socialism“(in its German – racist- version of nationalism has German perversion) more appealed to emotions never attracted a great number of followers. and feelings referring to a vague notion such as When the Muslim Brotherhood was founded in „nation“, Karl Marx had managed to give 1928(four years after the caliphate had been „socialism“ a more scientic appearance. The abolished by the Turkish Republic) this could be way towards classless society was marked by a understood as an indication that Islam sooner or road map according to which one could later would be considered a resource to be measure, at which point a respective society Instrumentalized as a core element in redening would have arrived. Lenin went a step further peoples' identity and the state's legitimacy. introducing the notion of the„avantgarde“; belonging to the avantgarde meant to have the Two names stand out as those who, eventually,