Tag: Military
NEWSLINK Politico/J.Kirchick: “The Norwegian TV series that’s enraged the Kremlin. And why you should watch it.”
NEWSWATCH Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP): “UKRAINE: THE PRESIDENT’S OFFSHORE TAX PLAN”
… actions by his financial advisers and Poroshenko himself … worth an estimated US$ 858 million, make it appear that the candy magnate was more concerned about his own welfare than his country’s – going so far as to arguably violate the law twice, misrepresent information and deprive his country of badly needed tax dollars during a time of war. […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK New Yorker/Masha Gessen: “Nadiya Savchenko Gives Russia the Finger”
NEWSWATCH: “Dutch referendum on Ukraine: A hard Dutch kick: Voting down the EU’s treaty with Ukraine would hand Vladimir Putin a win.” – The Economist
… Yanukovych … succumbed to Russian pressure and renounced an association agreement with the European Union that he and his predecessors had spent six years negotiating. Many Ukrainians thought their country’s best hope for transforming itself from a corrupt gangster state into an orderly democracy … had been sacrificed on the orders of … Putin …. Thousands set up camp […]
» Read moreNews Flash! The Truth Is Heard On Russian TV
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – The Daily Vertical: Brian Whitmore – April 1, 2016) Every once in awhile, a voice of reason and truth can be heard — even on Russian state television. What? You don’t believe me? Well, look, I saw it with my own eyes and heard it with my own ears — and I don’t think I was […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK TRANSCRIPT: “Statement by the President of Ukraine at the Forum ‘Ukraine’s Battle for Freedom Continues'” – President of Ukraine
Ukraine bans all Russian films released after Jan 1, 2014
(Interfax – March 29, 2016) Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada has banned broadcasting of the “films of the aggressor state” produced and/or publicized (demonstrated) for the first time after January 1, 2014. The bill, entitled “On making changes to the Ukrainian law ‘On cinematography’,” was favored by 237 parliamentarians on March 29. Having passed the law, the parliamentarians extended the ban to […]
» Read moreU.S. Embassy: No way of exchanging Savchenko for Bout and Yaroshenko
(Interfax – March 29, 2016) Washington is not considering the possibility of exchanging Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko, who has been sentenced in Russia to 22 years in prison, for Russian citizens Konstantin Yaroshenko and Viktor Bout, currently serving prison terms in the United States for drug trafficking and arms dealing respectively, the U.S. Embassy in Russia has said. “No, we […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH Kyiv Post/Arseniy Yatsenyuk: “‘We must impose a moratorium on the struggles between political allies'”
The Kyiv Post features an English translation of Easter remarks by Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. … Our internal and external threats remain exceptional. We are in real danger of the imminent threat of an ungovernable political and economic environment, of financial instability and international fatigue with the Ukrainian political class, not to mention from Russian military aggression. No wonder […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK Gordon Hahn: “Russia’s Syria Intervention and Withdrawal: New Details”
NEWSLINK TASS: “Russian Security Council chief urges new approaches to national security”
NEWSLINK The National Interest/Alexander Kirss: “Russia’s Artful Exit from Syria. Moscow entered and exited the conflict all within five months”
Moscow Accuses Itself
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – The Daily Vertical: Brian Whitmore – March 24, 2016) Well, it was predictable, but Sergei Lavrov has not let us down. He’s proven yet again the axiom that if you want to know what Russia is doing, pay close attention to what it accuses the West of doing. The Russian foreign minister yesterday urged Europe to […]
» Read moreRBTH: Why does Moscow need Syrian Kurdistan?
Why is the Kremlin supporting the Syrian Kurds, who are now complicating the reginal picture by pushing for federalization, and how will this affect Russian assistance to the Bashar al-Assad regime? (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – SERGEI DEMIDENKO, SPECIAL TO RBTH – March 24, 2016) Sergei Demidenko is a Middle East expert and professor at the Russian Presidential […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK Carnegie Moscow/Denis Volkov: “Russian Elite Opinion After Crimea”
Syria analyst: Damascus cannot take Russian support for granted
Russia’s recent air campaign in Syria has had mixed effects on the civil war there. RBTH interviewed Noah Bonsey, Senior Syria Analyst at International Crisis Group, an NGO that researches conflicts and aims to advance policies for their resolution, as he returned from a recent field trip to Syria. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – NIKOLAI SHEVCHENKO, RBTH – […]
» Read moreKyiv sees Savchenko’s conviction as Moscow’s failure to comply with Minsk Agreements – Foreign Ministry statement
KYIV. March 22 (Interfax) – The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has demanded that Ukrainian military pilot Nadiya Savchenko’s conviction be reversed and she be freed. “We view this judicial farce as yet another undeniable evidence of the Russian Federation’s failure to comply with the Minsk Agreements,” the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a statement in Kyiv on Tuesday. “The Ukrainian Foreign […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH Reuters: “Risk of nuclear war in Europe growing, warns Russian ex-minister [Igor Ivanov]”
The East-West standoff over the Ukraine crisis has brought the threat of nuclear war in Europe closer than at any time since the 1980s…. said Igor Ivanov, Russia’s foreign minister from 1998 to 2004 and now head of a Moscow-based think-tank founded by the Russian government. … Russia and the United States have cut their nuclear arsenals [but] the pace […]
» Read moreInterfax: Russia submits proposals to U.S. on monitoring truce in Syria
(Interfax – March 21, 2016) The Russian Defense Ministry submitted proposals on the provision and monitoring of the cessation of hostilities in Syria to the United States on Feb. 25 through military diplomatic channels, Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, head of the Main Operative Department of the Russian Armed Forces General Staff, has said. “This document specifies a mechanism of consultations […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH: “How Putin Could Make Russia Great Again” – Newsweek.com/William Courtney, Donald Jensen
After Russia annexed Crimea … Obama dismissed it as a regional power that acts ‘out of weakness.’ [ ] Russia is more … but a penchant for zero-sum statecraft and coercing neighbors lessens its stature. By cooperating more in the international arena, Russia could become a greater power. … Putin’s announcement of a military drawdown in Syria hints that Russia […]
» Read moreTRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting on construction of Kerch Strait Bridge and Crimea and Sevastopol’s socioeconomic development
(Kremlin.ru – March 18, 2016) Vladimir Putin held a meeting on construction of the Kerch Strait Bridge and on Crimea and Sevastopol’s socioeconomic development results and their integration into the Russian Federation’s economic and legal space. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues. Let me start by congratulating everyone on the second anniversary of Crimea and Sevastopol’s reunification with […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “SYRIA: U.S.-RUSSIAN TEPID WAR. Syria appears unlikely to serve as a vehicle to improve the wider U.S.-Russia relationship in any sustainable way. A U.S.-Russian Tepid War can still lead to plenty of collateral damage.” – Valdai/Paul Saunders
NEWSLINK Businessinsider.com: “Vladimir Putin just did the US a huge favor” [George Friedman]
NEWSLINK TASS: “Russian military to stay in Syria to protect Hmeimim, Tartus bases – Kremlin”
NEWSLINK: Financial Times/Fyodor Lukyanov: “Russia is following a clear strategy in Syria; Few in Moscow believe that the Assad regime will last long without changes, writes Fyodor Lukyanov”
NEWSWATCH: “Don’t Fear the Russians” – New York Times/Anatol Lieven
Writing in the New York Times, Anatol Lieven argues for greater U.S.-Russian engagement on Ukraine and Syria. If you believe many of the commentators and policy makers in Washington … Putin … is an expansionist on the march. … he annexed Crimea and fueled a destabilizing conflict in eastern Ukraine. … intervened in the Syrian civil war and rescued his […]
» Read moreTRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting with Russian Armed Forces service personnel
(Kremlin.ru – March 17, 2016) At a meeting in the Kremlin’s St George Hall, Vladimir Putin presented state decorations to service personnel and defence industry specialists who distinguished themselves in the performance of special missions in the Syrian Arab Republic. More than 700 officers and men of the Aerospace Forces, the Ground Forces and the Navy attended the ceremony, along […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH: “RUSSIAN HYBRID WARFARE AND OTHER DARK ARTS” – War on the Rocks/Michael Kofman
Following Russia’s annexation of Crimea, hybrid warfare has become conversational short form in the West for describing Moscow’s sneaky ways of fighting war. … a dangerous Kremlin innovation the West must learn to grapple with. … the word has mutated from describing how Moscow was fighting its war in Ukraine to incorporating all the various elements of Russian influence […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK TASS/VTsIOM: “Every fourth Russian [four out of ten respondents] assesses results of Russian operation in Syria as positive – poll
Black Sea Rising: Rebirth of a Russian Fleet
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner – March 17, 2016) From a military point of view, Russia’s ground operation to annex Crimea in 2014 was an exceptionally clean affair, and gave ample opportunity to demonstrate the fruits of Moscow’s military modernization efforts. But for Russia’s famed Black Sea Fleet, the most tactically relevant action it could take was to […]
» Read moreDreams in Isolation: Crimea 2 Years After Annexation
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Eva Hartog – March 17, 2016) DZHANKOI, SIMFEROPOL, KERCH, Crimea – The soldiers carry assault rifles and stand guard, some of them wearing black balaclavas to protect their faces. No more than 100 meters and a bridge separate them from the nearest Ukrainian positions. There, against the gray sky, a blue and yellow flag flickers […]
» Read moreTRANSCRIPT: “Ukrainian Reforms Two Years After the Maidan Revolution and the Russian Invasion” – Senate Testimony by Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland
(U.S. Department of State – March 15, 2016) Testimony of Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary, Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs Statement Before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Washington, DC As prepared Thank you Chairman Corker, Ranking Member Cardin, members of this committee for the opportunity to join you today and for the personal investment so many of you have made […]
» Read moreRBTH: Syria withdrawal: Which of Russia’s forces are being pulled out?
Russia is withdrawing more than half of its fighters and bombers from Syria, while leaving its missile defense systems and naval fleet in the Mediterranean, Russian military experts told RBTH. Despite the pullout, the Russian armed forces will continue to strike positions Moscow says are held by ISIS militants. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – NIKOLAI LITOVKIN, RBTH – […]
» Read moreInterfax: Yet another humanitarian aid convoy to be sent to Donbas on March 24 – Puchkov
MOSCOW. March 16 (Interfax) – Yet another humanitarian aid convoy for Donbas residents is due to be sent on March 24, said Vladimir Puchkov, Russia’s Emergency Situations Minister. “We are now readying yet another humanitarian convoy. We are completing all necessary preparatory procedures, coordinating with the International Committee of the Red Cross, committees from Kyiv, a convoy is planned for […]
» Read moreRussian S-400 systems may stay in Syria for a while – Federation Council
(Interfax – March 15, 2016) Russia may keep its S-400 surface-to-air missile systems in Syria for a while, the chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s defense and security committee, Viktor Ozerov, has said.
» Read moreSyria Opposition Says Russian Military Pullout Helps Peace Talks
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer – March 15, 2016) Syria’s main opposition group said Russia’s withdrawal of forces from the country will help peace talks in Geneva, even as a top Russian military official said that airstrikes will continue against terrorists. The pullout ordered by Russian President Vladimir Putin is “a positive step which will help to move forward […]
» Read moreRBTH: Moscow is winding down its presence in Syria. Why? Why now?
Observers are hotly debating the true reasons for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s order to downsize and refocus the military operation in Syria, with some describing it as a tactical withdrawal while others label it an acknowledgement of failure. What is really behind the unexpected decision, and what will happen now? (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – VLADIMIR MIKHEEV, SPECIAL […]
» Read morePutin’s Pullout: Behind Russia’s New Syria Surprise
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – Steve Gutterman – March 15, 2016) Vladimir Putin surprised his country and the world on March 14 by ordering the start of a partial withdrawal of Russian forces from Syria, less than six months after the beginning of an air campaign that followed a swift and secretive buildup on the ground. What are the motives and […]
» Read moreInterfax: Moscow expects Syrian armed forces to take over fight against IS from Russian Aerospace Forces – diplomat
MOSCOW. March 15 (Interfax) – The terrorist threat in Syria still persists, even despite “ISIL’s broken back,” and Russia expects the Syrian army to take on the main burden of opposing this threat, says Vladimir Andreyev, a deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department of New Challenges and Threats. “Naturally, the terrorist threat persists, even with a broken back, […]
» Read moreHawks See Obama’s NATO Pick as Soft on Russia
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Josh Rogin – March 11, 2016) At a crucial moment in the U.S. relationship with Europe, President Barack Obama has chosen a No. 2 for NATO whom some Republican lawmakers see as the face of a wrongheaded approach to Russia. On Tuesday, the Obama administration informed NATO allies that it will recommend the undersecretary of state […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH: Washington Post editorial: “Russia’s latest show trial”
The Obama administration keeps betting that Vladimir Putin is genuinely interested in a diplomatic settlement in Ukraine. The case of Nadiya Savchenko offers powerful evidence to the contrary. … Savchenko, 34, is a Ukrainian army officer who served with the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq and later volunteered for a battalion that fought Russia’s invasion of her country’s eastern provinces in […]
» Read moreObama: Ukraine ‘Vulnerable’ To Russian ‘Military Domination’ No Matter What U.S. Does
(RFE/RL – rferl.org – March 10, 2016) U.S. President Barack Obama said that Ukraine “is going to be vulnerable to military domination by Russia no matter what” the United States does. In one of a series of interviews published on March 10 that formed the basis of an article in The Atlantic magazine, Obama said that Ukraine was clearly a […]
» Read moreRussia Is Giving up on Its Tragedies-and on Itself
(Eurasia Daily Monitor: Volume 13, Issue 45 – Jamestown Foundation – jamestown.org – Pavel K. Baev – March 7, 2016) Pavel K. Baev is a research professor at the Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO) and nonresident senior fellow in the Center on the United States and Europe at Brookings. President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating is regularly accepted as a proxy […]
» Read moreTwo Faces of Russia’s Foreign Policy
(Kennan Institute – wilsoncenter.org/program/kennan-institute – Maxim Trudolyubov – March 9, 2016) Originally many in the West tended to view Russia’s Syrian adventure as yet another one of “Moscow’s gambits.” Commentators described Ukraine and Syria in the same breath. But Russia is eager to demonstrate that the two projects could hardly be more different and that Moscow can be two things […]
» Read moreRussia Uses More Tools Than Just its Military to Influence, Threaten Neighbors
(U.S. Naval Institute – Panel: news.usni.org – John Grady – March 10, 2016) Russia’s meddling in countries along its borders “has deep roots” and likely would continue after President Vladimir Putin finally leaves the Kremlin, an expert in political risk said Wednesday. Agnia Grigas, a fellow at Occidental College and author of the newly released Beyond Crimea: The New Russian […]
» Read moreUkraine: Hard Choices in a Forgotten War
(Voice of America – Luis Ramirez – March 7, 2016) DONETSK REGION, UKRAINE – Two years into Ukraine’s war, many of the people caught in the midst of it see the conflict as frozen and forgotten by the rest of the world. With diplomatic efforts thus far failing, many see either an escalation or the relinquishing of territory as the […]
» Read moreLeaked NATO report praises ‘professionalism’ of Russia’s air force in Syria
Russian mass media have been discussing a classified NATO report that praised the performance of the Russian aerospace contingent in Syria. (Russia Beyond the Headlines – rbth.ru – NIKOLAI SHEVCHENKO, RBTH – March 9, 2016) A number of Russian publications have referred to a leaked NATO document that allegedly acknowledged the “efficiency” and “professionalism” of Russia’s aerospace forces in Syria. […]
» Read more‘We’re Not Giving Up on Crimea,’ US Defense Official Says
(Voice of America – March 2, 2016 – Carla Babb) Nearly two years after Russia’s annexation of Crimea, the territory remains under Russian control, and in the eastern part of Ukraine there has been an uptick in the fighting. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb discussed the issue with Michael Carpenter, deputy assistant secretary of defense with responsibilities for Russia, Ukraine […]
» Read moreThe “heroes of Novorossiya”: where are they now?
Two years ago, a separatist movement in southeast Ukraine brought war and tragedy to the whole country. Though the crisis continues, the movement’s first leaders have gone their separate ways. (opendemocracy.net – Alexandr Litoy – March 2, 2016) Alexandr Litoy is a Moscow-based journalist, specialising in socio-political issues and youth extremism. He began his career at Novaya Gazeta, before moving […]
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