reviews 793 Lane, Thomasand Wolariski, Marian,S. (eds)Poland andEuropean Unity: Ideas andReality. Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Wroclawskiego, Wroclaw,2007. 272pp. Notes.Zl 30.00. This collection ofessaysprovidesan interesting overview ofa questionthat hasbeenlargely ignored byscholars ofEuropeanintegration: thecontribution ofPolishémigréintellectuals to themovement forEuropeanunity. The first eight chapters ofthebookbyGrosbois, Wolañski, Lane, Goddeereis, Faraldo, Lukaszewicz, Mochliñski and Stoklosapresent biographical sketches ofPolish federalists working intheUnitedKingdom,Belgiumand Spain. Some ofthe figures whoselivesare celebratedin thiswork,suchas JózefRetinger, Jan KulakowskiorJerzyLukaszewski, may be morefamiliar to the student of Europeanintegration thanothers, suchas RowmundPilsudski. The finaltwo chapters differ in content from therestofthevolume:Stadtmüller' s penultimate chapteraddressesfederalist discoursein contemporary Poland, and Bokajlo'sfinalchapterasksthe generalquestionofwhatkindof federalist model is mostappropriate forEurope. The book has something of a 'les hommesqui ontfaitl'Europe'threadrunning throughout it,and in common withmuchoftheliterature ofthisgenre,thetoneis almostWhiggish as its charts progress towards 'theEuropeanidea'. As an introduction to the Polish contribution to federalist thinking in Europe,the book worksreasonably well. Perhapsthe volumewould have benefited froma longerintroduction and the additionof a conclusionto bindtheessaystogether moretightly - thefinaltwoessays,and thelastin particular, sit somewhatuncomfortably withthe precedingeightcontributions .The book was producedas part of a researchprogramme entitled 'Federalist ThoughtinPolishExileCommunities 1945-91and itsInfluence on theForeignPolicyofthePolishThirdRepublic'.The questionoftheactual influence ofémigré thought on Polishforeign policyisleft foranother volume, whichis a pitysinceit meansthiscollection ofessaysis purelydescriptive. Nonetheless, forthosewho are interested in PolishEuropeanpolicy,and the contribution ofCentralEuropeansto thecause ofEuropeanunity, thisbook is a useful introduction. University ofBirmingham Nathaniel Copsey Bowker,Mike. Russia, America andthe IslamicWorld. Ashgate,Aldershot and Burlington, VT, 2007.x + 193pp. Tables. Bibliography. Index.£55.00. CiviLiZATiONAL approachestointernational studies haveproventobe controversialin recentyears,yetMike Bowker,in his broadlytitledbook Russia, America andthe Islamic World deserves credit forhistransparent intention notto shyawayfrom thediscourse. Fromtheoutset Bowker associates hisworkwith SamuelHuntington's 'ideas on the"clashofcivilizations" as a framework of analysis'(p.7) whilehe also wisely acknowledges thelasting imprint oftraditionalfactors and approachestointernational relations. In doingso,however, thefundamental strengths and weaknesses in hisworkbecomeevident. 794 SEER, 87, 4, OCTOBER 2OO9 Predictably, theterrorist attacks in New Yorkon 11September 2001serve as a milestone in raisingtheprofile of theclash of civilizations exponents. BowkernotesthatGeorgeW. Bushwas inclinedtowardsclassicAmerican isolationism untiltheNew Yorkterrorist attacks whichforcedtheUS presidenttoconfront international dangers. The greatest threat toWestern civilizationhad apparently becomemilitant Islam.Thistypeofviolent and extremist Islam could not accommodateitself withmodernWesternvalues such as individualliberty and the rule of secularlaws. More worrying was that militant Islamicgroupssuchas Al-Qaeda weregainingaccess to advanced weaponsthathad thepotential formassdestruction. Likewise, RussianPresident VladimirPutincouldnotevade thethreat of militant Islam emerging fromthe Caucasus withlinksto global Islamic extremists. His growing authoritarianism at home paralleledwithnational popularity was in part a reactionto crude terrorist actionsby Chechen militants. Bowker notesthatlikeBushtheRussianPresident's coreinstinct was ctoraiseliving standards acrossthecountry' (p.2).The implication isthatboth menwerereluctant warriors in theglobalwaragainstmilitant Islam. The waron terror seemeda naturaloutcomeofa viewthat,in thewords ofBowker, 'culture and religion aremoreimportant thanbefore and Islamist terrorism poses a new kindof threatin the post-coldwar period' (p. 10). Bowkeralso refers to Huntington^ validpointthattheWestacteddecisively whenRussia appearedto threaten Christian East Europeanneighbours but turned a blindeyetoviolations againstMuslims, namelyin Chechnya. Yet thisoutlookfallsintothetrapofmediahypethatdeflected attention away fromarguablyfarmore seriousmediumtermchallengesincluding China'srelentless militarization, nuclearproliferation (India,Pakistan, Israel), ambitiousrepressive authoritarian regimessuch as Iran and Syriain the MiddleEast as wellas growing Russianassertiveness in itsbordering regions andUS unilateralism. Essentially, theinternational challenges continued tobe bettercharacterized in termsof classicgeo-strategic rivalries and interstate conflicts. Whiletheimageofbeardedsuicidebombers ismoresensationalist, itwould be flawedto use thisas the basis fora clash-of-civilizations view of the post-ColdWar international system. Washington's relationship withaustere Muslimstatessuchas Saudi Arabia,Qatar or Pakistan revealslittle clashof valuesand,overtheyears, theUnitedStateshasdisplayed immense tolerance towardsSyria,whichostensibly aimsto destroy Israeland has a verypoor humanrights record, butsimultaneously refuses torecognize Hamas following itselection successamongPalestinians on thegrounds offailing to recognize Israeland beingdriven byan extremist Islamist ideology. Russiaforitspart, whilefighting MuslimChechensand supporting Christian Armeniainitswar againstMuslimAzerbaijan,has also in turnsupported MuslimAbkhazians againstChristian Georgians. Allthesepointsas wellas theUS-Russianinterplayin theBalkansduringthe 1990sare succinctly highlighted in chapters throughout thebook. /'mong tne iamngs in me dook is a lacK 01 auenuon paia Islamicconflicts. Whilea chapter isunderstandably dedicai verylittleon Saudi Arabia,itswealthyand influential r lo ine aeep miraed toIranthereis ival and spiritual reviews 795 leaderoftheSunniIslamicworld.Withinthepost-Soviet space little is dedicatedtothedistinction between themoreprevalent traditional SufiIslamand theimported militant Wahhabismthatappearsto be wellpast itspeak of influence amongCaucasian and CentralAsianMuslims.Moreover,Bowker has fallenintothetrapthatdownplays thethreats and regionalambitions of Iran and itsShi'itesurrogates, suchas Hezbollah in Lebanon,because ofa telescopic focuson Sunnimilitancy thanks totheinfamy ofAl-Qaeda and its affiliates. Bowker'sbook tacklesan extremely broad and complicated...