Radical Islam and the State in Crimea Prior to 2014: The Case of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami

The looming danger of radical Islamism and religious struggles for hegemony effectively converged in the local Ukrainian context case Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami (HTI), or Islamic Party Liberation. For want a more notorious Islamist group Ukraine, this organization became treated various media as main embodiment extremist terrorist threat. Likewise, despite fact that actual number HTI’s followers sympathizers Crimea remained uncertain, due to its high public visibility, pre-2014 period movement often stepped into spotlight number-one rival Spiritual Administration Muslims Mejlis, chief representative bodies Crimean Tatars. Thus, although annexation by Russian Federation March 2014 completely derailed dynamic development region, an analysis previous activities there can still become important contribution in-depth understanding movement’s dichotomous nature global phenomenon, well relations with state strategies social accommodation European settings. Hence, article offers nuanced comprehensive look at peninsula prior beginning Euromaidan protests (November 2013), focusing on involvement politics interactions law enforcement agencies government authorities. Special attention is paid discourses HTI milieu key elements self-representation general posing no existential threat Ukraine’s socio-political cultural order.