Tensions On Belarus Border: A Look At Military Spending And Arms Import Patterns – Analysis

Relations between Belarus and its NATO neighbours deteriorated further over the summer. Troops have been deployed on both sides of the Belarus–Poland border, and each country has accused the other of escalating tensions. Lithuania this month closed two of six border crossings with Belarus. Belarus’s defence minister, Viktor Khrenin, went as far as suggesting that ‘the possibility of a direct military clash with NATO in the future has become quite obvious’.

Le général Sourovikine remplacera-t-il Prigojine ?

Des photos du général Sourovikine faisant partie de la délégation militaire russe en Algérie sont apparues sur le net. Apparemment, l’ancien chef de l’armée de l’air russe a été nommé par les hauts responsables du pays pour remplir les fonctions de Prigojine au sein du PMC Wagner. La structure devra peut-être faire face à un reformatage juridique et à un changement d’image. Il n’y a plus beaucoup de «musiciens» dans la zone OMS aujourd’hui et tous ont déjà rejoint le PMC, qui est sous le contrôle total du ministère russe de la Défense.

After Prigozhin: The future of Wagner and Russian gray zone activities in MENA

On Aug. 23, an Embraer Legacy-600 business jet exploded over Russia’s Tver Oblast. The crash resulted in the deaths of Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, co-founder Dmitry Utkin, and logistics head Valery Chekalov. While predictions of Prigozhin’s impending demise were widespread after he launched an abortive mutiny against Russia’s military leadership on June 23, his death — and the dramatic way in which it came about — sent renewed shockwaves across the world and plunged the Wagner private military company’s (PMC) global influence operations into a state of uncertainty.

Iran, Russia, and the Caspian environmental crisis: A need for collaboration

The Caspian Sea, the world’s largest inland body of water, is steadily shrinking. Water levels reached a critical low in 2022 and continue to fall by 6-7 centimeters per year, with some projections suggesting it could drop by as much as 9-18 meters by the end of the century. Although the five littoral states — Iran, Azerbaijan, Russia, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan — have a history of making efforts to maintain it, the unique environment of the Caspian basin has been in decline in recent years.

Russia Sanctions: Opportunity For Turkey – OpEd

Recently, Turkish President Erdogan and Russian President Putin met in Sochi.

In the statement made by the Kremlin just before the Wagner rebellion in June, it was stated that Erdogan invited Putin to Türkiye and that preparations were being made. But the meeting was held in Russia, not in Türkiye as expected. The focus of the meeting was the Black Sea Grain Corridor Agreement.

Why Yevgeny Prigozhin Had to Die

The way in which Prigozhin was apparently killed suggests the Kremlin wanted to show how it deals with traitors. Whatever really happened, the Russian elite will see the air crash as retribution for Wagner’s armed uprising.

Operation Northwoods: The Cold War Conspiracy that Never Was

Every so often, history presents us with stories that sound more like Hollywood scripts than factual events. Among the pantheon of could-have-been episodes from the past, Operation Northwoods stands out as one of the most startling and controversial.

Cost Of Non-Negotiation With Russia Over Ukraine – OpEd

US President Joe Biden has been very firm with countries that have politico-economic relations with Russia. Equally, Vladimir Putin has been very firm in his warning to the US and the Western bloc not to cross his undefined “red line”. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned the West not to cross a “red line” with Russia, saying such a move would trigger an “asymmetrical, rapid and harsh” response.

The Imperial Russian Regime Was Neither ‘Great’ Nor ‘Enlightened’ – OpEd

Pope Francis made headlines last week when he described the Russian Empire as “enlightened” and invoked the names of two expansionist Russian czars as examples of Russia’s “great culture.” In impromptu remarks, Francis said to a group of Russian Catholics, “You are the heirs of the great Russia: the great Russia of saints, of kings, the great Russia of Peter the Great, of Catherine II, of that great, enlightened Russian empire, of great culture and great humanity.”