Introduction As Taiwan holds local elections on November 26 and presidential elections in early 2024, the island nation faces tough decisions in the midst of its changing economic, political and strategic trajectory. Polling suggests that the Kuomingtang (KMT) may have the upper hand in local... MORE

Introduction  The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) status as the armed forces of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is particularly manifest in its handling of military diplomacy. This article examines the background and evolution of the Office of International Military Cooperation (OIMC)—the main Central Military Commission... MORE

On November 11, a summit of the leaders of the Organization of Turkic States (OTS) convened in Samarkand, Uzbekistan (Report.az, November 5). This major gathering came amid the OTS’s re-emerging significance as a key regional organization and a critical platform for rapprochement between the Central... MORE

Moscow has actively tried to restore at least part of its arms lost in Ukraine after almost nine months of its bloody war. Publicly, the Kremlin declares that nothing crucially serious is plaguing this re-production and that the domestic defense factories will have no problem... MORE

Both supporters and opponents of Russian President Vladimir Putin and his war against Ukraine all too often rely on two primary factors to determine the amount of public opposition to his policies among the Russian population. Many assume that protests are the best measure, concluding... MORE

On October 31, Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka approved the draft agreement with Russia on the establishment and functioning of combat centers for the joint training of Belarusian and Russian servicemen (Belta, October 31). As such, the Belarusian Ministry of Defense has now been tasked with... MORE

Following Russian General Sergey Surovikin’s interview on October 19, the Kremlin’s information warfare machine aimed to put a positive spin on the general’s words of “tough decisions” to come for Russian forces in Ukraine (YouTube, October 25). Surovikin’s interview immediately resulted in widespread reactions from... MORE

In recent weeks, Belarusian civilians have been called up for military training in increasing numbers, with mobilization instructions attached to their military identification. Is this a prelude to entering the war against Ukraine, show for the Russians or preparation for contingencies? According to Artyom Shraibman,... MORE

The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has finally initiated its highly anticipated railway project to Uzbekistan. On the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit held in September 2022, the official decision was made to begin actively working on the railway (The Diplomat, September... MORE

On October 19, Romania’s Romgaz and Azerbaijan’s Socar inked a memorandum of understanding expressing an intention to “explore the opportunity of jointly developing a liquefied natural gas project [LNG] in the Black Sea” (Romgaz.ro, October 19). Both parties committed to preparing a comprehensive feasibility study;... MORE