Latest Articles about Military/Security
With Sochi Games Approaching, Moscow Imposes New Restrictions on Personal Freedoms in the North Caucasus
On January 29, the Memorial human rights center reported that the police in Dagestan had compiled lists of Salafis and required people on such lists to notify the authorities when they intend to travel outside the republic. Suspected Salafis are required to submit such notifications... MORE
Kazakhstan, Israel Deepen Military Ties
On January 20, in Tel Aviv, Kazakhstan’s Defense Minister Adilbek Dzhaksybekov signed a military cooperation agreement with Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon formalizing military and defense industrial ties. It was Dzhaksybekov’s first trip to Israel. The Kazakhstani defense minister and delegation members spent the next... MORE
Non-Traditional Threats to Sochi
The recent warning from the US State Department not to wear patriotic clothing outside of the “ring of steel” in Sochi proper might have been thought to forestall an attack from Islamists. But there are many other “non-traditional” threats to foreign visitors to the Winter... MORE
Ded Moroz, Sergei Shoigu and the ‘Magic’ of the Russian Media (Part Two)
A Duma roundtable in November 2013 on the leadership of Russia’s Armed Forces since the dismissal of Anatoly Serdyukov as defense minister in November 2012 offered broad support for his replacement (see Part One, EDM, January 21). While supportive of the current minister of defense,... MORE
Russian Authorities Play Down Security Threat to Sochi Olympics
With weeks to go before the opening of the Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, US and Russian media reported that female suicide bombers might be targeting the upcoming event. The police reportedly visited hotels and distributed leaflets with a description of the potential suicide bombers,... MORE
UPDATED: Lunar Rover Marks Another Advance in China’s Space Programs
UPDATE (1/31/14): According to state media, the Yutu lunar rover suffered a “mechanical control abnormality" and failed to complete preparations for its second lunar night, which began January 25th (Xinhua, January 25). This means that it will likely lose all functionality during the -292 degree Fahrenheit... MORE
Mixed Messaging Surrounds Latest South China Sea Moves
On January 1, new fishing regulations for the South China Sea, issued by the province of Hainan, went into effect, prompting objections from China’s territorial rivals in Southeast Asia, as well as the United States and Japan (Xinhua, January 10). Chinese spokespeople have sought to... MORE
Has the Number of Chechens Fighting in Syria Reached Its Peak?
The situation in Syria has not changed significantly in the past month, but the same cannot be said about the Chechens who are fighting there. Indeed, the Chechen groups in Syria have evidently radicalized and split into different factions because of the dispute between al-Nusra... MORE
Republic of Cyprus to House Russian Aircraft, Naval Ships
The eastern Mediterranean, which has seen an intermittent Russian naval presence for more than two centuries, will again see Russian military assets deployed there as a new Russian-Cypriot agreement takes effect. On January 10, Cyprus’s Council of Ministers approved a defense ministry draft proposal for... MORE
Ded Moroz, Sergei Shoigu and the ‘Magic’ of the Russian Media (Part One)
In the aftermath of the Russian holiday season and its familiar linkage to Ded Moroz (Father Frost), naive beliefs appear seasonably appropriate. Since the appointment of Russia’s defense minister, Army-General Sergei Shoigu, in November 2012, opinion polls continue to confirm him as one of the... MORE