Expectations regarding President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Beijing on Saturday (June 25) had been rather subdued, and the modest results were mostly immaterial. Last year, the two leaders grandiosely celebrated their countries’ World War II victory over the Axis powers; and in 2014, they announced... MORE

After the armed Islamist underground movement in southern Dagestan lost ten militants, including the group’s amir, Abu Yasir (Gasan Abdullaev) (see EDM, June 23), the militants of the armed underground movement in Kabardino-Balkaria also experienced a setback. The losses by the Kabardino-Balkarian militants were smaller... MORE

*To read Part One, please click here. Newly entrenched on the Crimean peninsula, Russia has appropriated the title to large parts of Ukraine’s continental shelf and exclusive economic zone (EEZ). According to the treaty on Crimea’s accession to Russia (a constitutional act in Russia), “the... MORE

Aspirationally at least, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is transitioning from reassurance measures to a more serious deterrence posture on the Alliance’s “Eastern flank” vis-à-vis Russia. Decisions in this regard will be finalized down to the wire of NATO’s summit in Warsaw (July 8–9).... MORE

Russian security services conducted a special operation, on June 16–17, against militants in southern Dagestan’s Suleiman-Stalsky and Tabasaran districts. During the operation, the security forces located ten armed men in the area. The militants refused to surrender and opened fire on the authorities. All ten... MORE

RT-Inform, a firm owned by the Russian non-profit state corporation Rostec, announced, on June 9, the creation of a protected instant messenger (IM) application designed for use by Russian companies and state agencies (gosstruktury) (Rbc.ru, June 8). The financial details of this initiative are being... MORE

Last week, Russia’s defense minister, Army-General Sergei Shoigu inspected Russian troops fighting in Syria "under orders of President Vladimir Putin." On June 18, Shoigu visited the Russian operational command center at Hmeymim airbase, near Latakia, from where Russian bombers run sorties against the Syrian opposition,... MORE

In late May–early June, the “world championship” of the Confederation of Independent Football Associations (CONIFA) took place in the breakaway Georgian territory of Abkhazia. Twelve soccer teams from internationally unrecognized territories participated. CONIFA is a federation of football associations that was established in 2013 (Sputnik-abkhazia.ru,... MORE

The 1st Guards Tank Army was formed in the Soviet Union, during the Second World War, in 1943. It was disbanded in 1999, but re-established in 2015. As more details about this reborn heavy military unit come to light, worries increase about the threat it... MORE

President Vladimir Putin ordered, on June 14, another of the traditional “snap inspection exercises,” which have become a hallmark of the approach to testing combat readiness in the hands of Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. The latest snap inspection exercise, running from June 14 to 22,... MORE