Latest Articles about Military/Security
Perceptions of Success and Failure in ISAF Operations in Marjah, Afghanistan
NATO’s International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) launched Operation Moshtarak in the Nad Ali and Lashkar Gah Districts of Afghanistan’s Helmand Province in mid-February. The intent was to wrest it from Taliban control and create a “bubble of security” for local governance, described in an ISAF... MORE
Russian Leadership Forced to Personally Monitor the Situation in the North Caucasus
On June 14, President Dmitry Medvedev made an unannounced visit to Chechnya. This was his first trip to Chechnya as president of Russia. The trip resembled a state visit, with the Russian president laying flowers at the grave of Akhmad Kadyrov, the first pro-Moscow president... MORE
Iran’s Nuclear Crisis Causes Unease in Armenia
Armenia is watching, with unease, the latest developments in neighboring Iran’s standoff with the international community over its controversial nuclear program. The new, harsher sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council on Tehran last week raise fresh questions over the growing Armenian-Iranian economic ties which... MORE
Makarov Announces “New Look” Operational-Strategic Commands
The momentum of change denoting Russian military reform continues to attract widespread attention among both the critics and advocates of the “new look,” while leaving deeper issues unresolved. By December 2010, the existing six military districts (MD’s) will be replaced by four enlarged operational-strategic commands... MORE
Will Russia be Cast as “Peacekeeper” in Kyrgyzstan?
Kyrgyzstan’s interim leader, Roza Otunbayeva, has taken the desperate step of requesting Russian military intervention to quell the violent civil conflict in southern Kyrgyzstan. She presented that request to Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev, by telephone and letter on June 11, to Prime Minister, Vladimir Putin,... MORE
Violence in Kyrgyzstan Threatens to Undermine Provisional Government
What began as a spat among young patrons of a local bar in Osh on the night of June 10 has turned into one of the bloodiest clashes in Kyrgyzstan. Officials to date have reported over 110 dead and thousands injured (www.akipress.kg, June 13). The... MORE
The Capture of Magas May Prove to be More of a Challenge Than a Triumph for the Kremlin
On June 9, Russian news agencies broke the news about the capture in Malgobek, Ingushetia, of the military commander of the Caucasus Emirate, nicknamed Emir Magas (RIA Novosti, June 9). Such a high-ranking leader of the North Caucasus insurgency had not been apprehended since 2000,... MORE
Iran Integrates the Concept of the “Soft War” Into its Strategic Planning
An Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said this week that “certain countries” are waging a “Soft War” against Iran that should be countered through the establishment of closer relationships with other nations (Tehran Times, June 8). The concept of a “Soft War” is quickly becoming an... MORE
Promoting the New Look for the Russian Armed Forces: the Contribution of Lieutenant-Colonel Aleksandr Kondratyev
In the summer of 2008 unidentified sources in the Russian defense ministry began to talk about a working document devoted to force structure development to 2030. The terms “new look” and “army of innovation” were both used to describe the general direction of military modernization... MORE
Will Captured Ingush Rebel Leader Die in Prison to Ensure his Silence?
Russian counter-insurgency efforts in the North Caucasus scored some major successes this week, with the capture of the top Ingush rebel leader and the reported killing of a group of rebels in Chechnya. But, according to a leading Moscow newspaper, the capture of Ali Taziev,... MORE