Russia’s military intervention in Syria is clearly not going well. Last Friday (July 8), another helicopter was reportedly shot down near Palmyra, and the Russian Ministry of Defense, after an initial denial, had to admit that the downed aircraft was not a Syrian Mi-25, but... MORE

Many in the West typically think about the three Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania as a single undifferentiated whole. But in fact, they are quite different despite being small and located next to one another (Paul Goble, “The Baltics: Three States, Three Fates,”... MORE

Georgian Defense Minister Tina Khidasheli signed a decree, on June 26, effectively abolishing military conscription by the Ministry of Defense (MoD). The decree applies only to the MoD and hence, to only 25 percent of the country’s conscripts. The remaining 75 percent of recruits were... MORE

The end of June 2016 featured two noticeable events that might alter Russian posture in the Baltic Sea region: Moscow resurrected its threats to deploy Iskander-M ballistic missiles to Kaliningrad oblast, and the Russian high command carried out an unprecedented in Russian history “decapitation” of... MORE

Be careful what you wish for because it just might come true. In the past, this author had often heard Russian diplomats complain that the West fails to pay proper attention to Moscow and that Russia’s position is being ignored. But the North Atlantic Treaty... MORE

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said, on July 5, that the June 28 attack at Istanbul’s international airport was carried out by natives of Dagestan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan (Korrespondent.net, July 5). “Unfortunately, our neighbors from the North Caucasus were involved in the terrorist attack,” Erdoğan... MORE

From the start of the conflict in Syria, access to the conflict zone has only been possible from the Turkish side. The militants’ dependence on Turkey forced them to avoid spoiling relations with the Turkish government. Even if Ankara did not help the militants in... MORE

Last week (July 1), during a visit to Helsinki, Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened that Finland’s security would be undermined if the Nordic country decided to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Speaking at a joint press conference with his Finnish counterpart Sauli Niinistö,... MORE

Russian Minister of Defense Sergei Shoigu sacked the commander of the Baltic Sea Fleet (based out of Baltiysk, Kaliningrad oblast), Vice Admiral Viktor Kravchuk, and his chief of staff, Vice Admiral Sergey Popov, on June 29 (Vesti.ru, June 29). Days later, news emerged that a... MORE

*To read Part One, please click here. President Barack Obama’s administration seems to pursue two contradictory goals: support Ukraine’s sovereignty and security in general terms but, at the same time, seek a short-term compromise that might satisfy Russia in Ukraine’s east. Preoccupied with “legacy” issues... MORE