Combating terrorism after Bin Laden

Bin Laden’s death is an achievement of great importance for combating terrorism worldwide, however regardless of all optimistic statements it is clear that the fight against terrorism is not over. Nobody can predict how things will develop in this regard. The situation around the globe is pretty complicated and despite the crash of the communist system late last century the overall climate is quite controversial.

Georgia’s pro western politicians and analysts welcomed Bin Laden killing. As Georgia’s President Saakashvili stated, the operation was America’s big success proving once again the might and sustainability of the US particularly in combating against terrorism. The President confirmed Georgia’s commitment in playing its part in protecting international safety. However there are forces in Georgia which are skeptical over the country’s armed forces participation in armed conflicts. They consider Georgia’s move as a threat for its safety. This opinion in particular has been increased after the war imposed on Georgia by Russia in August 2008. These people think that USA did not do much to rescue Georgia from Russian aggression. These skeptics ask the question of how secure Georgia is as an ally of the USA if it becomes the target of terrorist attacks. Asking this question already means that the US position in Georgia is challenged. Georgia is quite close to the territory of the Middle East from where activities of terrorist organizations are masterminded. After the 9/11 attack on USA, this country declared total war against terrorism around the globe. However US involvement on the ground with the aim of democratic reconstruction in Iraq and Afghanistan did not yield significant progress in this direction. The democratic development of these countries is far from impressive. Moreover in the beginning of 2011 things became very challenging for the Arab world as many countries underwent serious civil unrest and revolutions and there are many doubts as to whether the opposition forces in those countries are genuinely democratic or are disguised and in reality behind the revolutionary sentiments there are motives of Islamic Fundamentalism.

So far there has not been much trace of terrorist activity in the South Caucasus however in the North Caucasus, inside Russian Federation territory, they cannot stop the waves of terrorist attacks, as time to time the Russian media disseminates information about killings in the north Caucasus of Arabs or other nation's terrorists. At first glance such facts should prove that the situation in the north Caucasus has developed in compliance with the overall situation in the world, therefore receiving support of western countries. However it should be mentioned that the North Caucasus events are mostly determined by internal factors confrontation and faults of Russia's domestic policy. As for the death of Al Qaida leader many analysts in Georgia suggest that some retaliation acts can be anticipated.