Foreign Terrorist Fighters from the South Caucasus

Russian Federation remains concerned about the foreign terrorist fighter issue, especially about the cases of South Caucasian states of Georgia and Azerbaijan - countries of the post-soviet space. Georgian and Azerbaijani nationals joined Syrian jihadist armed groups and struggled in Syria and in Ukraine on both sides of the conflicts. The article identifies similarities and differences between foreign fighters of Georgia and Azerbaijan. The goal of the article is to identify reasons associated with the involvement of Georgian and Azerbaijani citizens in Syrian and Ukrainian conflicts. The article concludes that Georgian and Azerbaijani radicalized nationals are vulnerable to IS propaganda in part due to their own religious cleavages and societal grievances at home which the authorities prove incapable of mitigating. Under the influence of Chechen refugees it was Salafism that spread in Georgia. The role of pre-existing networks of terrorists on the territories of Georgia and Azerbaijan is also important. Alienation is a central theme, portraying the position of Muslims in Georgia. Besides, Muslims of both countries consider that their values and identity are at risk. The author makes the effort to highlight factors that distinguish the waves of terrorist-fighters going to the zones of conflicts from each other and addresses the problem of returnees.