By Vestnik Kavkaza
An article "Save Ukraine to counter Russia, says Soros" has been published in the Financial Times. The billionaire investor analyses the connection between the economic and political aspects of the situation around Ukraine and its possible consequences for Russia. George Soros states that Western policies towards Russia and Ukraine are currently leading to disastrous consequences and poses great risks for the eurozone. From his point of view, the gravest mistake made by the Western leaders was considering Ukraine just another state in need of financial support, disregarding Russia’s interests in the region. The tycoon is sure that sanctions imposed on Russia as a result of its stand-off with the West have had a more profound effect than anybody could imagine, which is dangerous for the whole European economy: "Sanctions against Russia reinforce the deflationary and recessionary pressures that were already present [in Europe] but have now become a reality." He also said that default in Russia is currently not an unlikely outcome, and this could harm the European economy: "A default would be a big blow to European banks exposed to Russia." Despite the fact that Soros does not urge Western countries to lift sanctions, calling them a "necessary evil", he strongly recommends them to shift focus to bailing out Ukraine, instead of putting greater pressure on Russia. He maintains that reinforcing Ukraine’s economy would mitigate or stop the crisis around the country.
With oil prices falling below $50 and a major weakening of rouble, Russia is facing a perfect storm, which is likely to accelerate reforms and make the country’s economy more efficient in the long-term. In an article "Plunging oil prices have rocked Russia, but Putin may yet surprise us", published in the Guardian, the author outlines the main directions of Putin’s policy, adopted to reinforce Russia’s economy. They are: "deoffshorisation", which is "now accelerated by the sanctions and the economic crisis as a whole." The edition praises Putin for the appropriate reponse to the current situation and its correct assessment. The Guardian stresses that Putin refuses to act the way he was expected to by Western countries, that is "tighten the screws and isolate itself [Russia] further." He hasn’t increased "state involvement in investment decisions and a more autarchic model of economic development." On the contrary, the leader undertook steps "towards supporting small and medium entrepreneurs. Already moves have been taken to reduce the regulatory and inspection burden, and to strengthen the rule of law when it comes to defending property rights."
The attack on Charlie Hebdo, a satirical weekly, which took place in Paris on January 7 and resulted in the deaths of 10 journalists, also made all the world pay particular attention to the underlying causes of such a tragedy. The past of one of the attackers, Cherif Kouachi, eliminated by the French special forces today, is very illustrative in this sense. In an article "The Long, Slow Fuse of Jihad in France", Foreign Policy magazine refers to Jean-Pierre Filiu, an expert on radical Islam at Paris’s Sciences Po university, suggesting that Cherif’s radicalization was likely to have been caused by the US invasion of Iraq: "The Iraq war was a defining moment for Muslims in France and other European countries that has sowed seeds of discontent that may yield dangerous harvests for years to come". The cited author believes that the invasion had a long-term impact, triggering "radicalization of homegrown cells and their manipulation by global outfits" and making the whole of Europe "a more dangerous place to live." From Filiu’s point of view, these events also brought about the integration of local groups "into the transnational networks of global jihad."
In an op-ed, published by the Washington Post, Sylvie Kauffmann analyzed why Charlie Hebdo became a target for the attack. It turns out that it was an act of punishment. Charlie Hedbo published, "almost 10 years ago, the cartoons of Muhammad printed in a Danish newspaper that had sparked deadly protests." Ever since, the edition has adhered to its position, which could be considered either daring or provocative, or both, but always was "quintessentially French, in its provocative irreverence, its not-so-tasteful yet very witty humor, its refusal to spare any taboo." The cartoonists of Charlie Hebdo were very popular and made frequent appearances in the media. They received threats "after publishing the Muhammad cartoons." After releasing a provocative front page headlined "Charia Hebdo" in 2011, the Charlie Hebdo offices suffered great damage from arson. However, the edition stuck to its position, severely criticizing clergy of all religions, as well as prominent politicians and sports figures.
In connection to the abovementioned tragic events in Paris, as well as the beheadings of Western journalists, murder of 132 Pakistani schoolchildren and hostages seized in Australia and ISIS expansion, anti-Islamic sentiment has increased significantly in recent months. The tragedies caused Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to call for "a religious revolution", the New York Times says in an article "Raising Questions Within Islam After France Shooting". The edition cites the president, who addressed the clerics: "It is unbelievable that the thought we hold holy pushes the Muslim community to be a source of worry, fear, danger, murder and destruction to all the world", urging them "to stand sternly" against radicalization. The article also notices that no correlation has been found between Islam and violence. Political scientist M. Steven Fish, University of California, Berkeley has conducted a research on the topic and found that the "murder rates were substantially lower in Muslim-majority countries and instances of political violence were no more frequent". The expert emphasized that Islam is a peaceful religion: "Is Islam violent? I would say absolutely not," the New York Times quotes the researcher.
The events also resulted in British special services demanding more authority. According to the article "Britain’s Domestic Intelligence Chief Calls for Greater Authority for Spies", published in the New York Times, Andrew Parker, the director general of MI5 said that currently, after "disclosures by the former National Security Agency contractor Edward J. Snowden in 2013," the privacy is "so absolute and sacrosanct that terrorists and others who mean us harm can confidently operate from behind those walls without fear of detection." He also pointed out that three similar planned attacks have been prevented in recent months in Britain.
