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NATO, Russia exchange barbs reminiscent of Cold War days - Military Times: Vershbow, the alliance's deputy secretary-general, told a conference in Latvia that President Vladimir Putin's "aim seems to be to turn Ukraine into a failed state and to suppress and discredit alternative voices in Russia.

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History, Religion Hamper Efforts to Counter IS Propaganda by webdesk@voanews.com (Mohamed Elshinnawi) Saturday March 7 th , 2015  at  2:32 AM Voice Of America 1 Share The militant group that calls itself the Islamic State (IS) has proved adept at radicalizing young Muslims, and Western countries, including the U.S., are finding that history and long-held beliefs in the Middle East put them at a disadvantage when countering IS’s recruitment efforts. A popular IS propaganda message is that the West in general and the United States in particular are at war with Islam. They also promote a narrative that Western interference is largely responsible for the historic grievances of the Islamic world. Omer Taspinar, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution said the collective memory of most Arab states is based on a sense of being victimized by a conspiracy of external powers. “Victimhood is very convenient because it allows you to escape responsibility an