Latest Articles about Military/Security

Moscow Readying Neo-Cossacks of Belarus for Use Against Lukashenka
Moscow has had little or no success in mobilizing ethnic Russians as a whole in Belarus against the current government in Minsk: the local Russian community, in almost all cases, blends easily with the Belarusian majority. But there is one group within that community with... MORE

Moscow Displays New Military Hardware Amid Rising Tensions (Part Two)
Russia’s triumphal display of apparent military strength during the annual Victory Day Parade is partly aimed at masking the dearth of foreign leaders attending the 70th anniversary celebration of the end of the Great Patriotic War, as well as showcasing some advances in weapons and... MORE

France to Refund Russia $1.2 billion for Non-Delivery of Mistral Helicopter Carriers
Russia’s March 17, 2014, annexation of Crimea plunged Russian-Western relations to their lowest level since the Cold War. Members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) subsequently imposed sanctions on Russia over its actions toward Ukraine. Notably, a pair of Mistral-class helicopter assault ships being... MORE

China Takes Stock of U.S.-Japan Alliance as Abe Speaks to Congress
As Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe visits the United States on April 26-May 3, all eyes in China are watching how Abe speaks about ongoing historical memory issues and how he is strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance. By revising the defense guidelines on April 27 and... MORE

China’s Global Maritime Presence: Hard and Soft Dimensions of PLAN Antipiracy Operations
Nearing the Twilight of Somali Antipiracy? The global antipiracy mission off Somalia, a hallmark for collective 21st-century international security, is gradually moving toward a close. There have been no successful Somali pirate attacks since 2012 and, barring a sudden spike in violence, navies may start... MORE

PLA Special Operations Forces: Organizations, Missions and Training
People’s Liberation Army (PLA) special operations forces (SOF) are considered among the “new type” units receiving priority for development (Information Office of the State Council, April 16, 2013). With their roots in pre-existing reconnaissance units, the first PLA SOF units were formed after the 1991... MORE

The Top Trends in China’s Military Diplomacy
Global outreach is the inevitable course for China’s forces to deal with various threats and to fulfill multiple tasks in the process of realizing the “Chinese Dream” and a strong military. China’s armed forces accelerated their global interactions in 2013. Chinese forces have appeared in... MORE

Game Change in the Western Pacific Region and R.O.C.’s Self-Defense Effort
One of the key factors for the Obama administration to pursue in its “Rebalance to Asia” policy is to deal with current and potential security challenges posed by North Korean nuclear and missile threats. Another factor is Chinese expansion of air and naval activities, both... MORE

Tajik Government Hypes the Islamic State Threat, Uses it to Control Population
The government of Tajikistan has long sustained a shaky narrative purporting that Central Asia is in imminent danger of being overrun by militant forces. Long menaced by the specter of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU), the government has more recently added a new group... MORE

Dagestani Militants Experience Series of Setbacks
After Ramzan Kadyrov’s statements authorizing Chechen police to shoot to kill police officers from outside Chechnya who appear there without notifying the republican authorities (see EDM, April 27), the governor of Dagestan, Ramazan Abdulatipov, came out in support of his colleague, saying that special operations... MORE