ISSN 2532-845X ASRIE Association of Studies, Research and Internationalization in Eurasia and Africa GEOPOLITICAL REPORT Volume 3/2018 GEOPOLITICS OF EURASIA International relations, security issues and economic projects ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X Geopolitical Report Geopolitics of Eurasia International Relations, security issues and economic problems Volume III Anno 2018 A publication of the Association of Studies, Research and Internationalization in Eurasia and Africa Online ISSN: 2532-845X Pag. 2 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X Pag. 3 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X Geopolitical Report A publication of the Association of Studies, Research and Internationalization in Eurasia and Africa (ASRIE) The third volume of Geopolitical Report titled Geopolitcs of Eurasia. International relations, security issues and economic projects aims at analysing the current political, economic, socio-cultural dynamics in Eurasia through a series of paper written by Italian and foreign experts, scholars and young researchers. Website: www.asrie.org Email: [email protected] Registered at the Italian Revenue Agency, Fiscal Code 97759360585 Online ISSN: 2532-845X Date: May 2018 Author(s): Alessandro C. Mauceri, Amedeo Maddaluno, Antonciro Cozzi, Clemente Herrero Fabre- gat, Daniele Garofalo, Domenico Caldaralo, Edoardo Corradi, Emanuele Aliprandi, Emanuele Pie- trobon, Francesco Balucani, Francesco Generoso, Giampiero Venturi, Giuliano Bifolchi, Igor Milič, Kaleriia Kramar, Luca Fortini, Ilenia Maria Calafiore, Michele Carretti Scope The aim of the Association of Studies, Research and Internationalization in Eurasia and Africa (ASRIE) is to promote international relations and business among Italy and foreign countries and further the study of and teaching on the geopolitical, economic, cultural and social characteristics processes and developments in different areas of the world. The Association is the result of shared experience and knowledge by professionals, geopolitical analyst, journalists, businessman and schol- ars willing to promote the intercultural exchange between Italy and the countries in the Eurasian Region and Africa, creating a link among the world of Business, Academy and Research. The association’s publication, Geopolitical Report, aims at investigating the current geopolitical and sociocultural events and trends which are shaping the world of international relations, business and security creating a debate by allowing scholars and professional experts to share their views, perspec- tives, working results, reports and research findings. One can submit manuscripts, analytical reports, critical responses, short articles, commentaries, book reviews to [email protected]. At www.asrie.org is it possible to find information about the association’s goals, activities, projects and publications which could be freely downloaded. Copyright © 2018 ASRIE All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied Pag. 4 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at [email protected]. Pag. 5 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X Introduction The term “Eurasia” refers to a joint continental landmass of Europe and Asia which extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east and from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Indian Ocean in the south. Because the sepa- ration between Europe and Asia derives from historical social theory, it is possible to consider Eurasia as only one geographical entity with no distinctive physical division between the two continents. Around 5 billion people live in Eurasia, approximately 75 percent of the human population, and this continental landmass is rich in natural resources. These are two reasons why Eurasia is strategically important and has played a significant role in the world of geopolitics and international relations. In 1904 Halford Mackinder in his The geographical pivot of history affirmed that “Who rules East Europe commands the Heartland; Who rules the Heartland com- mands the World Island; Who rules the World Island commands the World.”. The Heartland was identified as a geographical region in the centre of Eurasia whose con- trol allows the dominion of the world. Successively Nicholas John Spykman criticising Mackinder's Heartland theory stated that “Who controls the Rimland rules Eurasia, who rules Eurasia controls the destinies of the world.” In his approach, Spykman described the strip of coastal land that encircles Eurasia called Rimland as a fundamental geopolitical region. Zbigniew Brzezinski in his book The grand chessboard: American pri- macy and its geostrategic imperatives noted that: “… A power that dominates Eurasia would control two of the world’s three most advanced and economically productive regions. A mere glance at the map also suggests that control ‘Eurasia’ would almost automati- cally entail Africa’s subordination, rendering the Western Hemisphere and Oceania geopolitically peripheral to the world’s central continent.” Pag. 6 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X All these theories elaborated in different periods emphasised the central role of Eurasia in the field of international relations and geopolitics. Therefore, the third volume of Geopolitical Report aims at analysing the geopolitics of Eurasia con- sidering international relations, security issues and economic problems. Domenico Caldaralo opens the discussion regarding Eurasia focusing the atten- tion on the Belt and Road Initiative, the Chinese strategy which promotes human and commercial interconnection between Europe and Asia. As underlined by the author, the Belt and Road Initiative wants to inaugurate a “space revolution” in the Eurasian continent with the purpose of changing the geopolitical balances in the region and be- ginning a new season of economic growth. The success of the Belt and Road Initiative relies on the stability and security of Eurasia. Nowadays, ethnic conflicts, geopolitical interests and the rise of the terrorist threat are potential menaces for the Chinese strategy. Indeed, a great accent in this volume has been given to the role of Islam in Eurasia in an era characterised by radi- calism, extremism and terrorism. Ilenia Maria Calafiore underlines the rise of Islamisation in the post-Soviet coun- tries describing the different approaches that central governments have adopted to con- trast or regulate Islam. As noted by Calafiore, in some countries the central authority decided to counter the Islamisation of the society, in others Islam began to play a deci- sive role in the national identity, while only a few countries have demonstrated their ability to exploit the Islamisation to reorient foreign and economic policy. Emanuel Pietrobon identifies radical Islam as the main threat to security and stability of Eurasia which is the continent most affected by Islamist terrorism since the 1980s. Pietrobon highlights as fundamental the cooperation between the different ac- tors in Eurasia to contrast the rise of terrorist organisations which have interested those countries characterised by large Muslim communities such as India, Philippines, China, Russia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan and Afghanistan. Pag. 7 ASRIE Geopolitical Report Volume 3/2018 ISSN 2532-845X Francesco Balucani in his paper notes that jihadist propaganda is now merging with other types of extremism and supremacism, making terrorism a far more complex phenomenon than it was fifteen years ago. In his paper the author analyses terrorism in Eurasia and underlines that although an intense international cooperation is the only way to cope with transnational terrorism, there are both vexing impediments and high risks when signing bilateral or multilateral agreements on these issues. Speaking about Tajikistan, Luca Fortini discusses the rise of the terrorist threat in the Central Asian country which borders to Jihadist hotspots such as Afghanistan. The author recognises in the historical and political process of Tajikistan after the col- lapse of the Soviet Union and the birth of the republic as one of the causes of the radi- calisation process in the country. Economic and social problems together with political instability are destabilising factors which created a vacuum of power and distrust among the local population filled by jihadist organisations. Kaleriia Kramer analyses the case of Russia in the fight against terrorism with particular attention to the Informational Space. The author compares the ways of coun- teraction to terrorism in the information space in Russia and other countries of the world and considers the current international situation, which is characterised by in- creasing tension. In her article, Kramer underlines that it is fundamental the coopera- tion among the international actors and governments to counter the rise of terrorist threats. Unfortunately, the confrontation between Europe and Russia after the Ukrain- ian crisis and the cold relations between the Kremlin and the White House are among the reasons of a possible