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Latest Articles about Middle East
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Russian Air Defense: Showcasing Achievements, Silencing Problems (Part Two)
*To read Part One, please click here. Historically, the Air and Missile Defense Forces (Voyska Protivovozdushnoy i Protivoraketnoy Oborony—PVO-PRO) have constituted one of the main strengths of the Soviet/Russian Armed Forces and an indispensable national security element (Vko.ru, June 27, 2012). From late 2018... MORE
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Novatek May Be Carving Out a Bigger Role in Russian Energy Diplomacy
Russia’s second-largest natural gas producer, Novatek, which captured the largest share of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) market in Europe in the first quarter of 2019, has sold 20 percent of its planned Arctic 2 LNG project to China (Novatek.ru, April 25). The stake went... MORE
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Is Russia Really Cutting Its Military Spending?
Military force remains a predominant instrument of choice for Russian policymakers; yet, state expenditures on the Armed Forces continue to decline. This paradoxical situation was recently highlighted by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute’s (SIPRI) latest global military balance assessment, which the Russian media eagerly... MORE
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Russian Proxy Diplomacy in Syria: Crimea and Sevastopol
As the war in Syria appears to wind down, the Kremlin is shifting its focus to rebuilding the country and reestablishing social order there based on Russia’s vision and interests. Importantly, Moscow is evidently transferring the responsibility for this effort down to the level of... MORE
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Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide: Whither Jihadism in China?
Introduction—Ethnic Conflict in Xinjiang and the Government’s Response Over the past year, political re-education camps in the western Xinjiang Province of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) have attracted much international attention due to allegations that hundreds of thousands of Uighur Muslims are being detained... MORE
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Operations Against Hasm Continue but Security Forces Still Face Challenges
Egyptian security forces killed seven alleged Hasm militants in a shootout that left one police officer wounded in Giza province, according to a statement made by the Ministry of Interior on March 7. [1] This latest incident underscores the continued threat Hasm militants pose to... MORE
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Gazprom Resumes Imports of Turkmen Gas After Three-Year Break
The spokesperson for Gazprom, Sergey Kupriyanov, stated, on April 15, that the company had resumed gas imports from Turkmenistan (News Central Asia, April 16). His announcement was immediately confirmed by a statement from TurkmenGaz, Turkmenistan’s state natural gas company (Oilgas.gov.tm, April 15). Discussion on the... MORE
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Russian Opposition to Putin’s War in Syria Grows Despite Kremlin Propaganda Effort
Many have been struck by the fact that Russians have largely not actively protested against President Vladimir Putin’s military actions in Syria, unlike against his war in Ukraine. It has been suggested that, perhaps, this reflects the fact that Russians know far more about Ukraine... MORE
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Vega Strategic Services: Russian PMCs as Part of Information Warfare?
The Russian investigative agency Conflict Intelligence Team (CIT) published a report, on March 28, stating that, in addition to private military armies, Russia has now created a Private Military Company (PMC) of a new type. Specifically, the report examines Vega Strategic Services Ltd. (Vega), “a... MORE
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Russia Sets an Anniversary Ambush for NATO
The meeting of 29 foreign ministers from member countries of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), in Washington, DC, last week (April 3–4), marking the 70th anniversary of the North Atlantic Alliance, was not a joyful occasion for Russia. During the celebration, Russia was duly... MORE