August 2010 saw violent incidents all across Russia’s North Caucasus region, above all in Dagestan, where rebels and Russian police dealt heavy blows to each other. On August 21, forces from Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) and local police supported by army units conducted a... MORE

The death toll from the September 9 suicide bombing in Vladikavkaz, North Ossetia, rose today (September 10) to 18 (a toll that includes, according to some reports, one suicide bomber) with the number of wounded put at 158, more than 100 of whom remain hospitalized.... MORE

French President, Nicolas Sarkozy, received Russia’s defense and foreign affairs ministers, Anatoliy Serdyukov and Sergei Lavrov, at the Elysee Palace on September 7, capping a regular meeting of the Franco-Russian Council for Security Cooperation. This body brings together the two countries’ foreign and defense ministers... MORE

On September 7 in Paris, a regular session of the Franco-Russian Council for Security Cooperation turned into another French embarrassment over Russian procurement of Mistral-class warships. Russia is using bait-and-switch tactics. The defense and foreign affairs ministers, Anatoliy Serdyukov and Sergei Lavrov, officially informed their... MORE

On September 5, a suicide bomber driving a car packed with explosives attacked a Russian infantry military training camp near Buinaksk in Dagestan. According to official sources, four servicemen died in the attack and 35 were injured. Policemen who arrived at the site of the... MORE

The Russian defense ministry has announced that it will fully suspend the recruitment of new cadets for any of its military academies or schools for at least two years. The defense ministry is radically cutting the number of active service officers from 355,000 to 150,000... MORE

On August 31, Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, reiterated his previous appeals for the military industrial complex (MIC) to transform itself to meet the challenges of modernizing the equipment and weapons inventory, to achieve an unrealistic target of a 70 percent share of new systems by... MORE

Russia and Armenia have agreed to deepen their already close military ties, signing a deal that will strengthen Russian influence in the South Caucasus and could have profound implications for the unresolved Karabakh conflict. Amendments to a bilateral 1995 defense treaty were signed during Russian... MORE

On August 29, Chechen President, Ramzan Kadyrov’s, home village Tsentoroi (aka Khosi-Yurt) was attacked by a group of militants. Initial reports said there were ten casualties among the attackers and two among Kadyrov’s forces (RIA Novosti, August 29). Russian official sources stated that five civilians... MORE

Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, paid an official visit to Azerbaijan last weekend and added to all the protocol ceremonies an exchange of political gifts. Azeri President, Ilham Aliyev, wanted a substantial discussion of security matters, including Karabakh where a new clash had broken the old... MORE