Russian President Vladimir Putin has Ukraine cornered on the battlefield and in diplomatic negotiations at this moment (see accompanying article). On September 3, Putin proposed a seven-point ceasefire plan to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, under the duress of Russian and proxy military advances in Ukraine’s... MORE

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and the Donetsk and Luhansk “people’s republics” have issued parallel announcements today (September 4) about their mutual willingness to sign a ceasefire agreement tomorrow (September 5), subject to certain conditions that seem to be at hand. Russian President Vladimir Putin seems... MORE

After a largely bloodless routing of Russia-backed separatist rebels in Ukraine’s southeastern industrial port city of Mariupol in June, a combined force of regular and volunteer Ukrainian military units has been steadily pressing an offensive to crush the rebellion and regain control over the entire... MORE

China’s November 23, 2013 announcement of an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) covering much of the East China Sea sparked both controversy and questions about China’s underlying motivations (Xinhua, November 23, 2013). Beijing’s decision to create the ADIZ unilaterally, without prior notice and intentionally encompassing... MORE

On August 16, Rasul Gamzatov, the deputy mufti of North Ossetia and the imam of the Vladikavkaz mosque, was shot dead at the entrance of his apartment building. The murder, which took place shortly before midnight, was carried out by two unidentified young men who... MORE

The summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) that opens in the Welsh Celtic Manor resort tomorrow (September 4) will feature the Ukraine crisis as an agenda item of top priority and extreme urgency. Only a week ago, this crisis appeared manageable as Russian... MORE

On August 18, the Ekho Kavkaza news service published an interview with two Ossetian militants who are fighting on the Russian side in Ukraine. The militants preferred to be identified by their nicknames—Mamai and Volk (Wolf). They were interviewed at a café on the mountain... MORE

After recent successes by Russia-backed rebel forces in southeastern Ukraine, increased reports of Russian regular troops involved in the conflict, and belligerent statements by the Russian leadership, speculation mounts in Moscow as to the nature of the Kremlin’s “war aims.” Some clues as to Moscow’s... MORE

On July 8, the Ethiopian National Intelligence and Security Service (NISS) and Federal Police Joint Anti-Terrorism Taskforce announced the arrest of Andergachew Tsege, the secretary-general of terrorist group Ginbot 7 (“May 15” in Amharic). Ethiopia’s intelligence agency tipped off its Yemeni counterpart about Tsege’s arrival... MORE

On July 29, a series of photos posted to Lavdrim Muhaxheri’s Facebook account showed the 25-year-old Kosovar-Albanian jihadi combatant beheading a young Iraqi teenager (Gazeta Tema [Tirana], July 29). The photos sparked outrage among government officials and the public in Kosovo, reflecting the strong security... MORE