Islamic State stealthily approaching Russia’s southern borders

Foreign media are still commenting on a recent video address by the North Caucasus militants wherein they are taking the oath of allegiance to the Islamic State. The video address says that the Imarat Kavkaz (Caucasus Emirate) terrorist group is joining the jihadist group operating in Syria and Iraq, BBC reports.

BBC has requested comments from Russian experts and brought the assessments by the chiefs of the Russian Security Services.

After joining the Islamic State, the North Caucasus militants in future may use more savage methods characteristic to the Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi organization. One should expect from the fundamentalist underground movement in the North Caucasus a perception of the ideological and terroristic attitudes of the Islamic State. It will lead to more aggressive actions in future, Russian experts say.

Nikolay Patrushev, Secretary of the Russian Security Council has lately said in an interview that the Islamic State’s attempts to penetrate into the southern borders of Russia are one of the key threats to the country. In 2014, the IS founded the so-called Emirate Khorasan embracing part of the territory of Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan.  The goal of the terrorists is to overthrow the legal governments and establish Sharia Laws, Patrushev said.

In fact, the Jihadist group is not just approaching Russia’s southern borders, but also tries to gain foothold in the Russian regions densely populated by Muslims.  Moscow has faced another problem: the number of North Caucasus natives fighting on the side of IS in Syria and Iraq is growing. Speaking of the Russian citizens who joined the IS and other radical groups in the Middle East, Nikolay Patrushev said “more than 1000” people have left the country for that purpose.  Director of the Federal Security Council Alexander Bortnikov said 1700 Russian citizens have joined the IS, BBC reports.

Earlier, world news agencies reported that the Islamic State has announced the establishment of a province (vilayat) in the territories of Chechnya, Ingushetia, Dagestan, and Kabardino-Balkaria.  Abu Mohammad Al-Adnani, the second leader of the terrorist organization, named Abu Mohammad al-Qadari as the Wali (leader) of the new “Emirate.”