Despite the relatively slow pace of Russian military modernization (see EDM, November 8, 2016), the country’s Ministry of Defense announced in May that more than 50 percent of the equipment in service with the Armed Forces will be “modern” by the end of 2018 (Mil.ru,... MORE

A series of meetings since late December 2017 between officials from Uzbekistan and ROSATOM, the Russian state nuclear energy corporation, suggests that both sides have reached an agreement to build a two-reactor nuclear power plant (NPP) in this Central Asian republic. According to Bakhrom Ashrafkhanov,... MORE

During June 18–28, Russia’s southern city of Novorossiysk (Krasnodar Krai) hosted the trilateral joint tactical military exercise Slavic Brotherhood 2018, at the Raevsky training center (Tvzvezda.ru, June 26). Observed by defense attachés from 42 countries, these drills were the largest international maneuvers of the Russian... MORE

On June 13, the Russian Northern Fleet set sail for an exercise unusual both for its timing and for the numbers of ships and units that participated. The exercise began less than a fortnight after the summer training period started—a time of the year when... MORE

An interesting asymmetry of agendas has shaped up for the much-anticipated United States–Russia summit in Helsinki, Finland, on July 16 (see EDM, June 28). For President Vladimir Putin, the unscripted face-to-face in itself constitutes a major success and signifies that Russia, despite all its alleged... MORE

During the fifth meeting of the Ulaanbaatar Dialogue on Northeast Asian Security, held on June 14–15, in the Mongolian capital, regional energy and environmental cooperation projects were major highlights (Mongol Messenger, June 15; UB Post, June 16). Progress was particularly apparent on the “Strategy for... MORE

The Russian navy has boosted its presence in the Sea of Azov to approximately 40 ships, giving it the ability to control that body of water and to strike virtually at will along Ukraine’s coastline there, Vadim Skibitsky, a representative of the main intelligence directorate... MORE

The visit by United States National Security Advisor John Bolton to Moscow to meet with President Vladimir Putin and other top Russian officials resulted in an agreement to hold a long-awaited “historic summit” with Putin and President Donald Trump in Helsinki, Finland, on July 16.... MORE

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree, on June 21, approving the Draft Convention on the legal status of the Caspian Sea. And he encouraged President Vladimir Putin to ultimately sign the Convention (Pravo.gov.ru, June 22). Even though the complete official text of the... MORE

A team of top-level Russian guests, including President Vladimir Putin, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and the heads of both chambers of the Russian parliament, Valentina Matvienko (Federation Council) and Viacheslav Volodin (State Duma), visited the Belarusian capital of Minsk, on June 19. This high-ranking delegation... MORE