Nationalism and Terrorism

There is little that is straightforward about the relationship between nationalism and terrorism: each of these phenomena is deeply complex in itself, and the relationship between them is multiply so. This chapter addresses questions central to this significant relationship between two world-historical forces. First, to what extent do the politics of nationalism and its associated conflicts generate non-state (and also state) terrorist violence? Second, does the nationalist legitimation of high-functioning states produce order and stability which make terrorism less likely? Third, does terrorist violence act as a means of destabilizing existing nationalist orders, whether or not it helps to usher in new ones? Fourth, does the analysis and study of terrorism vary according to rival nationalist contexts and politics?