CONSIDERATIONS ON THE APPROACH TO THE CONCEPT OF TERRORISM, AS A DIMENSION OF THE SECURITY EQUATION, IN THE ASIAN SOCIETY.

THE TERRORIST PHENOMENON HAS ENJOYED A GREAT DEAL OF PUBLICITY LATELY, ESPECIALLY TOWARDS THE END OF THE 20TH CENTURY AND THE BEGINNING OF THE 21ST CENTURY, AS MORE TERRORIST ATTACKS HAVE BEEN MATERIALIZED ACROSS THE WORLD, BY DIFFERENT TERRORIST GROUPS. THE EVENT THAT CHANGED, HOWEVER, THE TOTAL PERCEPTION OF THIS PHENOMENON, BOTH FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE RESEARCHERS, THE POLITICAL LEADERS AND THE MEDIA, IS REPRESENTED BY THE ABOMINABLE TERRORIST ATTACKS THAT TOOK PLACE IN THE UNITED STATES, IN SEPTEMBER 11, 2001. SINCE THEN, DUE TO THE PARTICULARITIES OF THE ATTACKS AND THEIR IMPACT ON A PLANETARY LEVEL, MOST OF THE STATES AROUND THE WORLD HAVE INITIATED CONVERGENT EFFORTS TO LAY THE FOUNDATIONS AND TO ESTABLISH THE SECURITY STATUS ON A GLOBAL LEVEL, AND AT THE SAME TIME, THEY HAVE STARTED A COHERENT AND FOCUSED FIGHT AGAINST TERRORISM. IN PARALLEL, WELL-DEFINED NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGIES WERE CONCEPTUALIZED AGAINST THIS UNCONVENTIONAL THREAT FACED BY HUMANITY AND, IN THIS CONTEXT, MOST OF THE STATES INVOLVED GRANTED INTELLIGENCE SERVICES, IMPORTANT COMPONENTS OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY SYSTEMS, ADDITIONAL POWERS TO ENSURE THE SECURITY OF THE COUNTRY AND ITS CITIZENS. THIS PAPER PRESENTS THE WAY IN WHICH THE MULTIVALENT CONCEPT OF SECURITY IS BEING APPROACHED IN IMPORTANT COUNTRIES OF THE ASIAN CONTINENT, BY HIGHLIGHTING THE DIFFERENCES THAT EXIST CONCERNING THE LEVEL OF IMPORTANCE GIVEN TO THE ECONOMIC, SOCIAL, CULTURAL, POLITICAL OR MILITARY SECURITY. ALSO, THE SAME PAPER OVERVIEWS THE APPROACHES OF THE TERRORIST PHENOMENON FROM AN ACADEMIC, INSTITUTIONAL OR MEDIA POINT OF VIEW, AT THE LEVEL OF SOME ASIAN STATE ENTITIES. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]