Category: Security and Strategy

Source: Al Arabiya Russian warships held drills in the Bering Sea which separates Russia from Alaska, part of Moscow’s biggest military maneuvers since the fall of the Soviet Union, footage aired by the Ministry of Defense showed on Friday. The Vostok-2018 (East-2018) drills, which run until Sept. 17, are taking place in Siberia and in… Continue reading RUSSIAN WARSHIPS HOLD DRILLS IN BERING SEA IN HUGE MILITARY EXERCISE

By Peter Korzun Source: Strategic Culture Foundation The military-political landscape in Europe and the Mediterranean is changing. NATO is not as unified as it once was, and Turkey’s membership has become more of a formality than a real thing. A pro-US group consisting of Great Britain, Poland, and the Baltic States has emerged as part… Continue reading NEW ALLIANCE EMERGES IN EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN TO RESHAPE REGIONAL SECURITY LANDSCAPE

Source: The Print By Col. Vinayak Bhat (retd) Just last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke to leaders of African nations, welcoming them on his “development express”. This strategy has seen China’s exports to Africa increase by 55 per cent in the last five years. Beijing is also increasingly exporting weapons systems to African countries.… Continue reading CHINA GETS CLOSER TO ITS DREAM OF A BLUE WATER NAVY WITH RAPID EXPANSION OF AFRICA BASE

Source: Ekathimerini The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday reported that due to the rift in relations with Turkey, the US military is engaged in talks to expand its operations in Greece. This expansion will entail the use of more air and naval bases in the country. The paper cited American officials who said that relations… Continue reading DEFENSE COOPERATION BETWEEN US AND GREECE EXPANDING

Source: The Atlantic By Mark Galeotti The headline figures for Russia’s Vostok (or “East”) military exercises, which began yesterday, are dramatic: 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 tanks and other vehicles, 80 ships, and 1,000 aircraft operating across more than half the country. That’s double the size of the British armed forces. It’s also twice the size of… Continue reading DON’T FEAR THE RUSSIAN MILITARY

Source: Military.com By Vladimir Isachenkov and Sergei Grits Russia on Tuesday launched its largest military exercise since the Cold War, war games that will also involve thousands of Chinese troops in a show of burgeoning military ties between Moscow and Beijing amid spiraling tensions with the West. Moscow said the Vostok (East) 2018 maneuvers will… Continue reading RUSSIA LAUNCHES BIIGEST WAR GAMES IN DECADES INVOLVING CHINA

Source: Middle East Eye By Belen Fernandez In August, Georgia Today – an English-language newspaper of the eponymous former Soviet republic – featured a verbose analysis headlined “Georgia as ‘the Israel of the Caucasus’ – a Concept Worth Considering?” Following numerous twists and turns – including a quote from late Israeli prime minister Golda Meir,… Continue reading IS GEORGIA IN LOVE WITH ISRAEL?

Source: Shephard Media A Russian satellite attempted in 2017 to spy on a satellite providing secure communications for the French military, Defence Minister Florence Parly said on 7 September. The Athena-Fidus satellite, operated jointly with Italy, was approached ‘a bit too closely’ by Russia’s Luch-Olymp craft, known for its advanced listening capacity, Parly said at… Continue reading FRANCE SAYS RUSSIA TRIED TO SPY ON SATELLITE

Source: Asia Times By Gordon Watts Like most high-ranking military officers, Air Force General Xu Qiliang is direct and to the point. The vice-chairman of China’s powerful Central Military Commission rarely uses six words when one will do. Indeed, ‘blunt’ could be his middle name. Yet Xu left no-one in doubt about the depth and… Continue reading SINO-RUSSIA MILITARY RELATIONS AT “AN ALL-TIME HIGH”

Source: Defense News By Sebastian Sprenger The German government has presented an ambitious plan for beefing up the country’s armed forces over the next 10-plus years. The strategy comes in the form of a new “capability profile,” described by Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen as a “grand, comprehensive modernization concept.” At its intermediate point,… Continue reading GERMANY UNVEILS GROWTH PLAN FOR THE BUNDESWEHR