Latest Articles about Middle East
THE STRANGE STORY OF MIG-31 JETS FOR SYRIA
Yesterday, June 19, Moscow's respected business daily Kommersant reported that Russia's arms trading monopoly Rosoboronexport has begun to fulfill an arms deal it secretly signed with Syria earlier this year to sell five MiG-31E (Foxhound) jet fighters, considered one of the best in the world,... MORE
Moqtada al-Sadr Stepping into the Power Vacuum
Just hours after Moqtada al-Sadr reappeared in public for the first time since the U.S. security crackdown in January to demand the withdrawal of U.S. troops in a major speech in Kufa on May 25, a prominent Mahdi Army commander, Wissam al-Waili (known as Abu... MORE
MOSCOW CONSIDERS ENORMOUS INVESTMENT IN EASTERN RUSSIA’S GAS SECTOR
At a meeting on June 15, the Russian government discussed a draft " Program to Develop a Unified System of Gas Production, Transportation, and Supply in Eastern Siberia and the Far East, Including Possible Exports to China and the other Asia-Pacific Countries." Implementing the program... MORE
GUDAUTA BASE AND UNACCOUNTED-FOR TREATY-LIMITED EQUIPMENT: ONGOING RUSSIAN BREACHES OF CFE TREATY COMMITMENTS
In a formulation reminiscent of Soviet five-year plan-fulfillment reports, senior Russian officials claim that Russia has completely “fulfilled and over-fulfilled” its 1999 treaty commitments to withdraw its forces from Georgia and Moldova. Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and General Konstantin Totsky, Russia’s permanent representative at NATO,... MORE
NATO HOLDS FIRMLY AT EXTRAORDINARY CFE CONFERENCE WITH RUSSIA
The “Extraordinary Conference of the State-Parties to the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe” (CFE) can become a textbook case of Russian bluster, threats, and trade-offs proffered at third parties’ expense, all followed by retreat when faced with a united NATO position. Held on June... MORE
PUTIN HARVESTS POLITICAL DIVIDENDS FROM RUSSIAN ECONOMIC DYNAMISM
Russia’s economic performance cannot fail to impress even the most skeptical experts. The sustained growth that a year ago showed signs of slackening actually accelerated in the last quarter of 2006 to 7.8% and to 7.9% in the first quarter of this year and is... MORE
OFFER TO SHARE GABALA POLITICALLY ASTUTE, PRACTICALLY INADEQUATE
During the June 6-8 G-8 summit in Heiligendamm, Germany, Russian President Vladimir Putin apparently surprised President George W. Bush and other U.S. officials by offering joint use of a powerful early warning radar in Gabala, Azerbaijan (see EDM, June 11). Putin insisted that a missile-defense... MORE
TRANSNEFT ON A ROLL
In a wide-ranging news conference during the Economic Forum just held in St. Petersburg (Interfax, June 10), Transneft president Semyon Vainshtok outlined the state pipeline monopoly’s ambitious plans for internal and external expansion. Transneft, monopolist for crude oil pipelines, is swallowing up the smaller Transnefteprodukt,... MORE
RUSSIA WANTS A WHOLLY DIFFERENT TREATY ON CONVENTIONAL FORCES IN EUROPE
The “Extraordinary Conference of States Parties to the Treaty on Conventional Forces in Europe” (CFE), under way in Vienna since June 11 at Russia’s initiative, is developing in a wholly different way than had been expected. Russia is proposing what amounts to an almost total... MORE
New Arrests Show Turkey as a Recruiting Ground for Islamist Militants
On May 30, Istanbul police arrested 11 people suspected of having links with al-Qaeda. The authorities reportedly discovered al-Qaeda-related documents and false passports and identity documents in houses belonging to the arrested men. Police officials reported that they believe those arrested were making preparations for... MORE