The regular appearance in the Chinese media of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) figures calling for aggressive foreign policy causes controversy and confusion among foreign observers. The most sensational remarks usually are made by academics at PLA institutions. Foreign media routinely pick up sensational quotes from... MORE

On July 12, during a meeting between President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Army-General Sergei Shoigu, Russia’s commander-in-chief ordered a “surprise inspection” of combat forces in the country’s Far East. In the early hours of July 13, according to the defense ministry website, a “snap... MORE

Ukraine is preparing to take part in air defense exercises with Russia and Belarus and a multilateral air force exercise in Kazakhstan, all to be held by November 2013 (https://zakon4.rada.gov.ua/laws/show/200/2013). Minsk and Astana are key Russian allies in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), and... MORE

Experts have warned that the Dagestani authorities are opting for more heavy-handed measures in their efforts to resolve security issues in the republic in contrast to the previous republican leadership. On July 16, a roundtable on the remaking of Dagestani politics after the appointment of... MORE

Reverberations from the military operation in the Dagestani town of Semender in March have been felt throughout the republic, attracting attention to this small suburban town near the republican capital of Makhachkala. From March 20-27, government forces clashed with militants who were blockaded in a house.... MORE

The visit of Kazakhstani President Nursultan Nazarbaev to Uzbekistan on June 14, 2013, and the positive rhetoric accompanying the outcome of this visit—the two countries’ leaders signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement—highlighted the two Central Asia republics’ deepening cooperation (see EDM, June 19). This visit was... MORE

The Russian media have reported that in June alone, more than 20 people were killed and wounded in the North Caucasus (www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/226418/). Against the backdrop of such news, government official made a sensational statement about Russia’s ability to cope with the terrorist threat in the... MORE

A retired Ukrainian intelligence officer who attracted attention a month ago by calling for the formation of a Russian-Ukrainian corps to fight for the Syrian government now claims that there are 15,000 radical Islamists in the mountains of Crimea. Many of them, he claims, have... MORE

In an interview published on July 2, North Ossetia Interior Minister Artur Akhmetkhanov lashed out at the Muslim community of the republic for allowing radicalism to spread. Akhmetkhanov confirmed that four ethnic Ossetians had been killed fighting in Syria and that others were fighting on... MORE

The past two years have seen a steady rise in Russia’s willingness to deploy its navy into the Mediterranean, to Syria, and Cyprus in order to demonstrate Russian power, support the Bashar al-Assad government, check Turkish designs on Syria and Cyprus, and thwart Western intervention... MORE