More than 25 years after the Soviet Army withdrew from Afghanistan, Russia is engaged in an out-of-area operation beyond its frontiers. The Kremlin’s message alleges the air campaign is restricted to combatting the Islamic State in Syria though most of the sorties carry out strikes... MORE

On October 11, in an interview with Russia’s Rossiya 1TV channel, President Vladimir Putin reassured his audience that he did not intend to send Russian ground troops to Syria. The interviewer asked Putin about it twice, and twice the Russian president denied such plans. “Are... MORE

Russian foreign policy took an unexpected turn and suffered a serious setback last week when President Vladimir Putin suggested sending to Washington a delegation headed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, which was firmly turned down by the United States government. The initiative was poorly prepared,... MORE

During his speech addressing the United Nations General Assembly in late September, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced that China will take the lead in the creation of an 8,000-strong standby force for peacekeeping operations (FMPRC, September 29). Such a commitment will help cement Chinese military... MORE

At the beginning of his September official state visit to the United States, Chinese President Xi Jinping told a group of U.S. political figures that “China and the United States should join hands to solve problems they both face to make the world turn better... MORE

China has conducted its first joint Internet Anti-Terror Exercise (网络演习), “Xiamen 2015,” with the members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) (Xinhua, October 14). Teams from all of the SCO’s member states, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, participated (Xiamen TV, October 14). This... MORE

The clumsy attempt, in mid-September, of an Italian man to allegedly join pro-Russia separatist forces in Ukraine’s eastern region of Donbas, reignited the issue of Western “volunteers” fighting in this worn-torn country. The would-be Italian combatant for the self-styled separatist “people republics” of Donetsk and... MORE

A recent special operation in Grozny against suspected militants of the so-called Islamic State (IS) took Chechnya’s residents and analysts who follow the situation in the republic by surprise. Readers of Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov’s Instagram postings were the first to learn about the incident.... MORE

The Russian air bombing campaign in Syria began on September 30, with about 20 sorties a day. The bombing drastically increased on October 8, to over 60 sorties and reached 88 on October 13. The Russian mixed air task force deployed last month at a... MORE

A village whose people trace their roots back to the North Caucasus was among the first targets of the Russian air strikes in Syria. On September 30, the first day of the air strikes, Voice of America journalist Fatima Tlisova cited reports from Syrian sources... MORE