Terrorism cannot be treated as a monolithic threat. Moreover, as much as we may wish to focus on the terror tactics and terrorist means, we cannot overlook the ends. In fact, good policy can only be crafted with an understanding of the terrorist strategy; that is, how terrorists integrate their means to secure their goals, given their perception of the security environment. The groups covered in this book change and evolve. While their governments must take aggressive actions to secure their populations against attacks, those governments that recognize the real grievances can simultaneously take action that addresses those grievances. This two-pronged approach simultaneously bolsters state legitimacy across the ethnic and majority populations, while demonstrating state effectiveness regarding insecurity. The authors argue that the best way for states to win legitimacy vis-a-vis terrorists is by adhering to liberal democratic values, cooperating with other states, and applying prudent counterterrorist tactics. Inter-state cooperation, which affects domestic and foreign policies, requires some convergence of political cultures among those cooperating states. This book begins by analyzing five hotspot situations and their regional effects: the Basques in Spain, the ethnic Albanians in Macedonia, the Kurds in Turkey, the Chechens and Russia; and the Palestinians, Israel, and a future Palestinian state. These cases shed some light on how we should understand, characterize, and categorize terrorism, and they provide insights into the concepts of political legitimacy, liberal democracy, political culture, and political community. As the United States assesses its homeland defense posture, itmust resist any temptation to weaken its liberal democratic values, and, as a superpower, it must encourage other states to adhere to liberal democratic values as well. Liberal democracy is a security imperative in today's global security environment.

Ever sinces its independence in 1991, Macedonia has made remarkable progress towards building a pluralistic, multi-ethnic civil society. Yet if the international community supports the legitimacy of Macedonia as a state it has direct responsibility to anchor its future. No matter what view one subscribes to, one stubborn truth remains: Macedonia cannot achieve success on its own. This book provides observations that offer valuable lessons on this little known but remarkable part of Europe. This work provides a review of the historical basis for Macedonia's identity and its emergence as a separate nation during Socialist Yugoslavia (1944-1991). It takes a detailed look at the events and personalities that lead to the outbreak of civil war in 1991. This book contains aspects of the Ohrid Framework Agreement and perspectives on the contemporary situation following the elections of September 2002. Personal interviews with the first and second presidents of the Repulic of Macedonia are also included.