10
October 2013
Past Event
Rise of Radical Islamism in the South Caucasus: The Threat and the Response

Rise of Radical Islamism in the South Caucasus: The Threat and the Response

Past Event
Hudson Institute, Washington, D.C. Headquarters
October 10, 2013
Default Event Image
10
October 2013
Past Event

1015 15th Street, N.W., 6th Floor
Washington, DC 20005

Speakers:
Gal Luft

Director, Institute for the Analysis of Global Security

Richard Weitz

Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Political-Military Analysis

Joshua Walker

Director of Global Programs, APCO Worldwide

Brenda Shaffer

Visiting Researcher, Center for Eurasia, Russian and Eastern European Studies (CERES), Georgetown University

Alexandros Petersen

Advisor to the European Energy Security Initiative (EESI), Woodrow Wilson Center for Scholars

Svante Cornell

Research Director, Central Asia-Caucasus Institute and Silk Road Study Program

Ariel Cohen

Senior Research Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies and International Energy Policy, Heritage Foundation

Michael Rubin

Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute

Temuri Yakobashvili

Senior Transatlantic Fellow, GMF

Ilan Berman

Vice President, American Foreign Policy Council

Dan Burton

Former chair, House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Europe and Eurasia

While Iran is using home-grown Shia Islamists to undermine the secular nature of Azerbaijan, the growing influence of Salafi groups in the North Caucasus is now spilling into neighboring countries. At the same time, poorly designed and inadequately executed responses by various governments have contributed to this increase in extremism.

Given this situation, how can South Caucasian governments and the international community prevent the spread of radicalism and promote traditions of tolerant Islam that allow co-existence and cooperation among Christians, Jews, and Sunni and Shia Muslims? What is the U.S. security strategy and vision for the Caucasus region? What is Iran's strategy in the South Caucasus and to what extent should the region shape U.S.-Iran relations?

These questions are especially timely as the U.S. continues its withdrawal from Afghanistan, instability mounts in North Africa and the Middle East, and Tehran continues to reject international calls for a halt to its enrichment activities. Such turmoil also underscores the importance of strong and stable American allies in a region, the South Caucasus, of increasing importance to U.S. interests.

Hudson's October 10, 2013 conference on The Rise of Radical Islamism in the South Caucuses featured two panels of distinguished experts, the first moderated by Richard Weitz, Hudson Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis, and the second moderated by Ariel Cohen, Senior Research Fellow for Russian and Eurasian Studies and International Energy Policy at the Heritage Foundation.

Related Events
17
July 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Politics, Loyalty, and Survival: A Conversation with Salena Zito
Featured Speakers:
Salena Zito
Paul Sracic
Getty Images
17
July 2025
In-Person Event | Hudson Institute
Politics, Loyalty, and Survival: A Conversation with Salena Zito

Journalist and author Salena Zito will join Hudson Senior Fellow Paul Sracic to discuss her new book Butler: The Untold Story of the Near Assassination of Donald Trump and the Fight for America’s Heartland, releasing July 8. 

Getty Images
Featured Speakers:
Salena Zito
Paul Sracic
24
June 2025
Past Event
Investing in Africa
Featured Speakers:
Matthew Davis
Tony Carroll
Kurt Scherer
Moderator:
Joshua Meservey
Getty Images
24
June 2025
Past Event
Investing in Africa

Hudson’s Joshua Meservey will host a panel of investors with decades of collective experience in Africa. 

Getty Images
Featured Speakers:
Matthew Davis
Tony Carroll
Kurt Scherer
Moderator:
Joshua Meservey
24
June 2025
Past Event
The Need for Speed: Transforming Defense Procurement for a Dangerous World
Featured Speakers:
Congressman Mike Rogers
Congressman Adam Smith
Dan Patt
Bryan Clark
DVIDS
24
June 2025
Past Event
The Need for Speed: Transforming Defense Procurement for a Dangerous World

Join Hudson Senior Fellows Bryan Clark and Dan Patt for a discussion with Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Smith about the SPEED Act and why fixing defense acquisition and reviving the defense industrial base are essential to meeting America’s national security challenges.

DVIDS
Featured Speakers:
Congressman Mike Rogers
Congressman Adam Smith
Dan Patt
Bryan Clark
24
June 2025
Virtual Event | Online Only
NATO Public Forum 2025
Getty Images
24
June 2025
Virtual Event | Online Only
NATO Public Forum 2025

As an institutional partner to the 2025 NATO Public Forum, Hudson Institute supports this key platform for dialogue alongside the NATO summit in The Hague.

Getty Images