The Chairman of the Duma Defense Committee, Viktor Zavarzin, disclosed last week some details of previously secret future defense budget procurement plans. Procurement expenditure on new weapons will grow dramatically from 380 billion rubles ($12.7 billion) in 2010 to 980 billion rubles ($32.7 billion) in... MORE

Russia has sought to expand its trade with China in an apparent bid to prop up what was officially denoted as the strategic partnership between the two nations. Meanwhile, as bilateral trade recovered, China has regained a surplus in its trade with Russia. The official... MORE

Sino-Japanese relations took a decisive turn for the worse in the past month. At issue, Japan’s seizure of a Chinese trawler and its crew, and then the continuous detention of the captain after the crew and the boat were released. Tokyo accused the Chinese fishermen... MORE

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) engages in a variety of military exchanges and activities with the other members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The most recent major exercise, "Peace Mission 2010," was held from September 9-25 in southern Kazakhstan. All the member states... MORE

A high-profile Muslim religious service with government permission, held by Turkey’s leading ultranationalist party in an ancient Armenian church has sent shockwaves through Armenia and its worldwide Diaspora, further reducing the prospects for Turkish-Armenian reconciliation. The resulting uproar will make the Armenian government more cautious... MORE

The second annual meeting under the US-Georgia Charter on Strategic Partnership was held on October 6 in Washington. Led by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Prime Minister Nika Gilauri, respectively, the delegations held an ‘’omnibus’’ meeting –- that is, one encompassing the Charter’s four... MORE

NATO officials have recently once again attempted to bridge differences with Russia in the run-up to the November NATO summit in Lisbon. President, Dmitry Medvedev, was invited to Lisbon for a parallel NATO-Russian Council summit. NATO’s Secretary-General, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, during an interview to Interfax... MORE

Turkey and Syria held the second ministerial meeting of the High Level Strategic Cooperation Council in Syrian city of Latakia. The Turkish delegation, headed by Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, was composed of twelve ministers including Taner Yildiz, Vecdi Gonul and Besir Atalay (the energy, defense... MORE

Force elements, planning, scenario and the conduct of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Peace Mission 2010, staged in Kazakhstan from September 9 to 25, were largely similar to previous exercises (EDM, September 28). That is apart from the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA)’s contribution, which... MORE

As the Kyrgyz parliamentary elections near, Moscow’s attempts to influence the elections’ outcome is becoming more obvious. By using both its hard and soft power, the Russian leadership has been supporting favorable candidates, while marginalizing others before the vote on October 10. At least two... MORE