By Zhou Bo

December 31, 2014

"Is the world becoming more dangerous? This question was recently asked by strategists, scholars and foreign policy practitioners from across the world at Ditchley Park, Oxfordshire, without an affirmative answer.

Looking back at 2014, the sky of the West didn't have much of a silver lining. The key words that marked the year were Russia, Islamic State and defense spending. The Cold War ended a long time ago, but Russia looks like a threat again to the West. The IS is the most alarming of developments because terrorists can no longer be simplistically identified only as people from the Muslim world. According to CNN, at least 2,000 Europeans have traveled to Syria to join the IS. Many of them are now back in Europe fighting for radical Islam. In spite of these threats, public interest in defense spending is low. No matter how justifiable it might be, NATO's standard of 2 percent of member states' GDP will not be easy for most of them."

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http://africa.chinadaily.com.cn/opinion/2014-12/31/content_19206644.htm 

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