Himalayan Impasse: How China Would Fight an Indian Border Conflict
Does Islamic State Pose a Threat to India?
Russia Seizes Opportunity to Expand Drone Usage
What is Xi Jinping Thought?
Ahead of the 19th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), scheduled to begin on October 18, media attention has focused on top-level personnel changes. While the selection of China’s new group of leaders is... MORE
PLA Attempts to Attract Higher-Quality Recruits
In late August, China’s annual conscription (征兵) period ended. This years’ newest group of PLA recruits was reportedly among the worst in recent memory, with widespread reportage across Chinese and international media about the recruits’... MORE
Chen Quanguo: The Strongman Behind Beijing’s Securitization Strategy in Tibet and Xinjiang
Over the last year, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) Party Secretary Chen Quanguo (陈全国) has dramatically increased the police presence in Xinjiang by advertising over 90,000 new police and security-related positions. [1] This soldier-turned-politician is... MORE
Belarusian Economy: Challenges and Gains
In the first half of 2017, Belarus’s economy finally overcame its 2.5-year-long downward trend (EurasiaExpert, August 31). Thus, Belarus’s gross domestic product (GDP) has increased 1 percent compared with the first half of 2016. Industrial... MORE
Crisis Impels South Korea to Seek Russian Diplomatic Assistance
As North Korea’s accelerating missile and nuclear tests continue to intensify tensions on the Korean Peninsula, South Korea is seeking to broaden the country’s diplomatic and defense contacts beyond its traditional reliance on the United... MORE
Assessing the Sino-Russian Baltic Sea Drill
From July 21 to July 28, 2017, the Chinese and Russian navies conducted a week of joint drills in the Baltic Sea, the first of their planned two-phase bilateral maritime exercises for 2017. This was... MORE
Zapad 2017 and the Initial Period of War
Western media and analytical commentary on Zapad 2017 has focused on the numbers of Russian military personnel participating in the joint Belarus-Russia strategic exercise, speculating about whether Moscow was using the event as cover to... MORE
US Defense Secretary’s Visit to Ukraine and Perspectives for US-Ukraine Military Cooperation
Last month’s (August 24) visit of the United States Secretary of Defense James Mattis to Ukraine was the first such trip by a Pentagon head in the last ten years. Before arriving in Kyiv, Mattis... MORE
Romania on Course to Revamp Its Air Defenses
Faced with Russia’s military buildup in the Black Sea, Romania is set to acquire US-made Patriot anti-aircraft and missile-defense systems as well as 36 F-16 fighters in order to bolster its air-defense capabilities (Hotnews.ro, July... MORE