EVIDENTIALITY IN PUTIN'S POLITICAL SPEECHES ON TERRORISM

Abstract

            This research attempts to study evidentiality through analysing some selected quotations of Vladimir Putin's political speeches on terrorism. Violence crisis has been escalated since 2013 and till now in Iraq and Syria due to the emergence of different terrorist organisations. It is extremely important to know the reasons behind the growth and development of terrorism in recent years. If one takes the definitions which dealt with terrorism in the world, he/she can find that there is no fixed definition to terrorism. What is considered a terrorist in some countries is considered a fighter (mujahid) in others. Thus, killing thousands of Iraqis from the point of view of some states is resistance and Jihad, while these same actions are classified as "terrorist acts" when implemented in other countries. The financing of terrorist groups is behind the continuation of the terrorist-brutal operations on innocent civilians. The study aims at understanding the concept of evidentiality and its role in political discourse analysis. The study also aims to make everything clear to the public regarding the reasons which led to the emergence of terrorist organisations and the countries that support them based on the facts which Putin will present through his speeches. In order to achieve the aims, the study offers two hypotheses: Putin is certain from his information sources regarding the countries which finance the terrorists. Putin also uses different evidentials to reinforce the accuracy of his information. The study introduces the concept of evidentiality, its approaches, and significance in detail. In order to solve the problem of the study and achieve its aims, the researcher adopted two models: Chafe (1986) and Mushin (2001). Based on the analysis of data, the study explored that there are countries clearly support and finance terrorists, and Putin uses different evidential markers to reinforce the sources of his information. The study addresses these countries to stop financing terrorists