On February 12, a Russian presidential decree came into force that permits sending conscript soldiers to combat zones after a mere three months of training plus one month of regular service. The decree was not published on the Russian president’s official website, but instead was... MORE

In January, government forces killed 26 militants in the North Caucasus Federal District. Eight of those killed were referred to as leaders of the illegal armed groups. In the same period, 101 police operations were carried out in the district. Russia’s law enforcement agencies noted... MORE

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership transition from President Hu Jintao to Vice President Xi Jinping has proceeded at a breakneck pace and, arguably, not since Deng Xiaoping have the levers of power been so concentrated in one leader’s hands. Deng’s strength came from his... MORE

Despite the fulsome exchanges between Russia and China concerning their bilateral relationship, Sino-Russian military ties have, in recent years, been quite volatile. It now appears, however, that those ties are once again moving forward, largely due to shared perceptions of a U.S. threat. One key... MORE

China’s Ministry of National Defense recently announced that the first test flight of its Y-20 large transport aircraft took place on January 26. The development and testing of the Y-20 reflects the PLA Air Force’s determination to enhance its strategic projection capabilities. As PLA National... MORE

On February 5, Japanese Defense Minister Onodera Itsunori told the world that a Chinese Navy frigate had pointed “something like fire-control radar” at a Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (MSDF) destroyer some 100-150 kilometers north of the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands on January 30. He said the... MORE

The Russian government has been forced to admit it is worried not only about Islam’s proliferation in the North Caucasus, but also about the proliferation of ideas of the North Caucasian militants spreading to other regions of Russia. Russian authorities are trying to prevent the... MORE

On the last day of January, Kazakhstani media reported that Major-General Talgat Yessetov, the director of the Border Service Academy under the National Security Committee, had committed suicide in his office in the country’s capital. Before his appointment as the head of an elite military... MORE

Since the appointment of Sergei Shoigu as the Russian defense minister in November 2012, the conceptual basis for the reform of the Armed Forces, so closely associated with his predecessor Anatoly Serdyukov, has gradually ebbed away. Leading defense theorists and policymakers offer high doses of... MORE

On January 30, a conference on the influence of the Caucasus Emirate in the Volga region took place in Kazan (https://scienceport.ru/). Participants in the conference discussed issues related to the religious influence of the Northern Caucasus on the indigenous Muslim population of the Volga Region... MORE