On 11 August 2023, the American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) published the article "America and the 'War of Ideas' Against Islamic Extremism" by Ilan Berman, a NESA Center alum and regular speaker for NESA Center programs.

Berman's article is featured in AFPC's latest issue of its Defense Dossier publication, titled "Re-engaging in the Forgotten Fight," along with articles by four other authors.

The August 2023 edition (Issue 36) of Defense Dossier explores "what has become a largely-forgotten fight. Within a new era of great power competition, the U.S. has shifted away from the 'war on terror' – but it’s a battle that is far from over."

CHAPTERS:

1. THE IDEOLOGICAL COMPETITION IN – AND OVER – AFRICA by Alberto M. Fernandez

In Africa, the U.S. is pushing a progressive foreign policy agenda that is at significant odds with conservative local values – a state of affairs that Russia, China and assorted jihadists are deftly exploiting.

2. CHINA’S MODEL IS DANGEROUS FOR THE MIDDLE EAST by Alex Hu and Eric Brown

China’s value-free investment model in the Middle East is progressively wooing partners away from the United States.

3. BALANCING RELIGION AND STATE IN CENTRAL ASIA by Svante Cornell

In Central Asia, local governments have created a winning formula to stem religious radicalism, though their approach may be at odds with how the U.S. sees the issue.

4. RECKONING WITH THE TALIBAN’S RETURN by Kamran Bokhari

Examines the ramifications of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan and the implications of renewed Taliban rule.

5. AMERICA AND THE “WAR OF IDEAS” AGAINST ISLAMIC EXTREMISM by Ilan Berman

Focuses on the need for the United States to, at long last, shift its attention from the battlefields of Iraq and Afghanistan and focus in earnest on confronting Islamic extremism in the realm of ideas.

"If the fight against militant Islam has become less urgent for the United States, America’s allies in the Muslim World are still very much embroiled in it – as well as the struggle for hearts and minds that serves as its central front," writes Berman.

Read Issue 36 of Defense Dossier

About the Author

Ilan Berman is Senior Vice President of the American Foreign Policy Council in Washington, DC, and editor of Wars of Ideas: Theology, Interpretation, and Power in the Muslim World (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

About the Publisher

American Foreign Policy Council (AFPC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing information to those who make or influence the foreign policy of the United States and to assisting world leaders with building democracies and market economies. AFPC is widely recognized as a source of timely, insightful analysis on issues of foreign policy, and works closely with members of Congress, the Executive Branch and the policymaking community. It is staffed by noted specialists in foreign and defense policy, and serves as a valuable resource to officials in the highest levels of government.

The views presented in this article are those of the speaker or author and do not necessarily represent the views of DoD or its components.