West unfair on Sochi security

As the 2014 winter Olympics, which are scheduled to be held in Sochi, Russia, from Feb 6 to 23, draw near, super strict security measures are being implemented to ensure the Games are safe.

The enormous efforts and resources being used to secure the Games have aroused some doubts in the Western media, which claim they might dim the Olympic spirit. There have even been calls to boycott the Sochi Olympics.

Such comments seriously underestimate the necessity of the strict security measures. Since October, there have been a series of suicide attacks in Volgograd, Russia, and Russia's most wanted man Chechen rebel leader Doku Umarov has called for attacks on the Games.

It was only after decades of crackdowns on once rampant illegal armed groups that Chechenya, and the whole North Caucasus region, got a precious opportunity to start national rebuilding. However, terrorism has not been rooted out in the region. The terrorists now form smaller cells, even individuals, which make it harder for the authorities to locate them. Obviously, the vast territories and large number of ethnic groups adds to the difficulties of preventing attacks.

Also so-called black widows have been the perpetrators of many attacks. Since June 2000, young women have launched or participated in 26 terrorist attacks that have claimed more than 800 lives. The emergence of these black widows has its roots in the two wars in Chechenya - the loss of family members, even though they were terrorists, too, has caused these widows to inflict their hatred upon their compatriots. Terrorism bosses have seized the opportunity to make use of them.

The reason that the organizers of terrorist attacks have chosen these women to be the perpetrators is more than just they are easy to hide. Those controlling the net of terrorism also use these women for propaganda purposes, because they want to attract global media attention and make certain human rights groups feel inclined to "save" them. But their efforts are doomed to fail, as it is already the common sense of most people that these women are as cruel and cold-blooded as any other terrorists, and must be stopped.

Of course, it is unjustified to absolutely connect the black widow phenomenon with certain religions or ethnic groups. Globally there are many other terrorist groups that use females.

Why is Russia always a victim of terrorism? There are geographic and historical reasons. Stretching across the Eurasian continent, the country is home to various ethnic groups and religions, who had conflicts with each other. After the end of the Cold War, extremism combined with separatism and terrorism became rampant in the central Asian region and evidence shows that the three evil forces got direct funding, technical, and even human resources support from the global terrorist groups attacking the United States and European countries. It is actually the same enemy that the Eastern and Western hemispheres face.

That's why the countries that were victims of terrorism united in the anti-terrorism campaign. In September 2006, the United Nations General Assembly passed the 2006 UN Global Counterterrorism Strategy, to better coordinate joint anti-terrorism efforts.

However, some countries that promote counterterrorism in words are doing otherwise in deeds. Holding double standards on global counterterrorism, some Western countries and political groups show no tender care in fighting terrorism in their own territories, but politicize the same actions taken by other countries. For example, Russia's counterterrorism measures in the North Caucasus region and China's efforts to maintain stability in Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region are criticized by Western media and connected with discrimination against religious or ethnic groups. These double standards should stop.

Contrary to the divisive actions of certain Western countries, the members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization have set a good example by uniting against terrorism. Over the past decade, it was thanks to the coordinated efforts of the member states that stability and security have been ensured in Central Asia.

The suicide attacks in Volgograd show that terrorism is still rampant in the Eurasia continent. In the face of terrorism, it is important that countries defend their people. China and Russia need not only to further cooperate with each other in fighting terrorism, but also offer mutual support in denouncing the double standards set by Western countries. As the West is criticizing Russia for the tightened measures aimed at ensuring the security of the Sochi Olympics, China should support Russia's initiative.

The author is a researcher with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European and Central Asian Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.