Tag: Military
NEWSLINK: “A NATO Message for Mr. Putin. A new combat brigade could deter ‘a little green men’ incursion” – Wall Street Journal
NEWSLINK: “World War Three: Inside the War Room” – BBC
NEWSWATCH: “Reinforcing Deterrence on NATO’s Eastern Flank Wargaming the Defense of the Baltics” – RAND
RAND addresses the military dynamic in the Baltics in the event of a hypothetical prospective Russian attack. Russia’s recent aggression against Ukraine has disrupted nearly a generation of relative peace and stability between Moscow and its Western neighbors and raised concerns about its larger intentions. From the perspective of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the threat to the three […]
» Read moreNEWSWATCH: “Russia could overrun Baltics in 3 days. NATO forces would face severe casualties.” – Washington Times
The Washington Times covers a recent RAND report about the military dynamic that could exist in the Baltics in the event of a hypothetical Russian attack. On the same day the Secretary of Defense, Ash Carter, announced new resources being sought to strengthen Eastern European defenses from any possible Russian aggression, a report from the RAND corporation was released and […]
» Read moreRUSSIA & UKRAINE – Johnson’s Russia List table of contents :: JRL 2016-25 :: Thursday, 4 February 2016
Johnson’s Russia List :: JRL 2016-#25 Thursday 4 February 2016 A project sponsored through the Institute for European, Russian and Eurasian Studies (IERES) at The George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs The contents do not necessarily represent the views of IERES or the George Washington University. JRL homepage: russialist.org – JRL on Facebook: facebook.com/russialist – JRL on Twitter: @JohnsonRussiaLi Support for JRL is provided in part […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “Putin must be stopped. And sometimes only guns can stop guns. The time for diplomacy will come again, but it is not now: Ukraine urgently needs military support, and a counter to Russian propaganda.” – The Guardian/Timothy Garton Ash
NEWSLINK Tavis Smiley (PBS): “Interview with Marvin Kalb [author of ‘Imperial Gamble: Putin, Ukraine and the New Cold War’]”
NEWSLINK: “Pay Attention, America: Russia Is Upgrading Its Military. The Kremlin’s forces are in the midst of a historic overhaul.” – The National Interest/Steven Pifer
NEWSLINK: “The Pentagon’s Top Threat? Russia” – New York Times
NEWSLINK: “Ukraine’s Poroshenko sees increased risk of open war with Russia” – Reuters
NEWSLINK Interfax-Ukraine: “Ukraine won’t give up Donbas – Poroshenko”
NEWSLINK: “Ukraine’s police must not collaborate with Azov xenophobes” – Human Rights in Ukraine (Kharkiv, Ukraine)/Halya Coynash
NEWSLINK: “Ways out of a blind alley in Ukraine. Almost one year after the Minsk agreement to resolve the Ukraine crisis, diplomats are working frantically behind the scenes but the two sides are still entrenched. Frank Hofmann reports from Kyiv.” – Deutsche Welle
NEWSLINK UA Wire: “Russian Propaganda Film about Ukraine to be Shown on French Television”
Interfax: DPR militiamen accuse Kyiv of over 100 shellings over past day
DONETSK. Feb 2 (Interfax) – The Defense Ministry of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) said that the Ukrainian military have breached the ceasefire 28 times over the past day; two people were wounded. “The situation on the contact line has not changed over the past day. The Ukrainian army has shelled the territory of the republic 109 times as […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “Eastern Europe Cautiously Welcomes Larger U.S. Military Presence” – New York Times
NEWSLINK: “U.S. Fortifying Europe’s East to Deter Putin” – New York Times
Is There A Non-West for Russia to Lead?
(PONARS Eurasia – ponarseurasia.org – Keith Darden – January 28, 2016 – ponarseurasia.org/memo/non-west-for-russia-to-lead) Keith Darden is Associate Professor in the School of International Service at American University. (PONARS Eurasia Policy Memo) Recently, Russian policymakers and strategists have articulated a vision of a vibrant non-Western world, one in which the United States and European leaders are increasingly marginal and where Russia […]
» Read moreRussia Sanctions Can Be Lifted If Minsk Implemented – U.S. Ambassador
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – January 29, 2016) Sanctions against Moscow can be lifted after it implements the Minsk peace agreement with Ukraine, including restoration of Kiev control over separatist eastern regions, the U.S. Ambassador in Moscow John Tefft said in an interview published on the U.S. Embassy’s website Thursday. Washington has the full backing of its European allies in […]
» Read moreRussian Investigative Committee gives ICC data on S. Ossetia conflict crimes
(Interfax – January 28, 2016) The Russian Investigative Committee has provided the International Criminal Court (ICC) with the files of a criminal case opened into the crimes committed during the 2008 armed conflict in South Ossetia, Investigative Committee director Alexander Bastrykin has said. “The Investigative Committee of Russia conducted a thorough investigation into the crimes committed by the Georgian military,” […]
» Read morePutin’s Departure Alone Won’t Necessarily Solve Ukraine’s Problems, Popovich Says
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, January 28, 2016) Like many in the West, Ukrainians view Vladimir Putin as the main source of their problems; but if he dies or otherwise leaves the scene, a Kyiv commentator says, he could be followed by leaders who would be even worse, a reminder that the problem is not Putin alone […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “Security Before Politics in Eastern Ukraine There can be no free elections in the region so long as Russia’s tanks still roam free.” -Wall Street Journal/Wall Street Journal/Linas Linkevicius
NEWSLINK: “Making Sense of Minsk: Decentralization, Special Status, and Federalism” – Atlantic Council/Paul Niland
NEWSLINK AP: “Putin Aide: Kiev Refuses to Honor Minsk Deal”
NEWSLINK Wall Street Journal: “Europe Curbing Defence Cuts to Counter ‘More Assertive Russia,’ Says NATO.”
NEWSLINK Militarytimes.com: “Russian aggression a top concern in U.S. European Command’s new military strategy”
NEWSLINK Militarytimes.com: “U.S. vs. Russia: What a war would look like between the world’s most fearsome militaries. VLADIMIR PUTIN’S BRAZEN MOVES IN SYRIA AND UKRAINE RAISE NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT AMERICA’S CONTINGENCY PLANS.”
NEWSLINK Reuters: “International Court to Investigate 2008 Georgia-Russia War”
Putin, Trapped Between War and Revolution, Will Choose War, Ikhlov Says
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, February 2, 2016) There are two possibilities in Russia today: either Vladimir Putin is in control of events or he is their prisoner, trapped between war and revolution. As bad as the first would be, the way the world has gone to war in the past suggests the second may be even […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “In Ukraine, Putin Tries to Cash in Before Luck Runs Out” – Atlantic Council/Stephen Blank
NEWSLINK RBTH/Vzglyad: “Are Russia and the U.S. building military bases in Syria? The global media are increasingly reporting that the U.S. and Russia are building military bases in Syria”
Russian Entente Nears as Allies Give Ukraine Sanctions Hint
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – January 26, 2016) After almost two years on the outside, signs are growing that Russia may soon be invited in from the cold. The worsening of crises from Syria to Libya are forcing the international community to reconsider sanctions slapped on President Vladimir Putin’s government over Ukraine as a way of getting a key diplomatic power […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK UNIAN (Kyiv): “Ukraine gets $266 mln from U.S. over two years – Pyatt”
NEWSLINK Reuters/Lucian Kim: “A dangerous moment for Ukraine’s fragile ceasefire”
Can the North Caucasus adapt to political change?
Amid a crumbling and fragile system, central and regional elites gear up for a new power struggle in Russia’s North Caucasus. (opendemocracy.net/RBC – Denis Sokolov – January 25, 2016) Denis Sokolov is Senior Research Fellow at the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. If 2015 was the year of purges of regional elites for the North Caucasus, […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK: “Russian Oil: Output Grows as Prospects Shrink. Plummeting prices and U.S.-led sanctions raise questions about Russian oil’s capacity to continue underwriting Putin’s global ambitions.” – Wall Street Journal
NEWSWATCH: “Ukraine to reclaim Donbas this year – Poroshenko” – Interfax-Ukraine
Interfax-Ukraine reports on comments attributed to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko regarding conflict-ridden eastern Ukraine. Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has said … ‘At my press conference on January 14 I clearly proclaimed: my objective – and I firmly believe in this – is to restore Ukrainian sovereignty in Donbas already in 2016. And yesterday speakers in Davos also reaffirmed this position: […]
» Read moreUS Appears to Have Accepted ‘Donbas Model’ Not Only for Ukraine but for Other Conflicts, Russian Analyst Says
(Paul Goble – Window on Eurasia – Staunton, January 20, 2016) Petr Iskenderov, a researcher at the Moscow Institute of Slavic Studies and a commentator for Russia Today, says that it now appears the US has accepted what he calls “the Donbas Model” for the resolution not only of the conflict in Ukraine but for similar conflicts elsewhere. That model, […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK The Ukrainian Weekly (New Jersey): “2015: U.S.-Ukraine relations: support at a time of war.”
NEWSLINK The Guardian/Shaun Walker: “Caught between Russia and the US? The curious case of Ukraine’s Dmytro Firtash. Critics say the oligarch now living in exile pushed Putin’s agenda during Maidan revolution while a US arrest warrant appeared politically motivated.”
U.S. Beats Russia in ‘Most Powerful’ Ranking
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – January 22, 2016) Russia is second only to its former Cold War foe the United States in terms of its power to influence the global agenda but lags behind many other countries in most categories, a new ranking presented at the Davos World Economic Forum said. Moscow scored a 9.4 in the “Power” category, which […]
» Read moreRussia Pushing for An Endgame in Ukraine
(Moscow Times – themoscowtimes.com – Matthew Bodner – January 21, 2016) The appearance of one of President Vladimir Putin’s most enigmatic associates, Vladislav Surkov, at a meeting with U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland last Friday has sparked speculation that Moscow and Washington are approaching an endgame in Ukraine after two years of conflict. “That is was Surkov, and […]
» Read moreNEWSLINK Sputnik: “Maidan’s Tragic Aftermath: Ukraine Slides Into ‘Staggering’ Poverty”
NEWSLINK Russia Insider/Ricky Twisdale: “‘Impossible’ Kerch Strait Bridge Is Metaphor for Ukraine’s Fantasies About Russia. Russia doesn’t build anything – except state-of-the-art 19 km long bridges”
NEWSLINK: “In Ukraine, an Opportunity for Progress Between Russia and the West” – Stratfor
TRANSCRIPT: [Putin at] Meeting on the Advanced Research Fund’s development
(Kremlin.ru – January 19, 2016) The President held a meeting on the development of the Advanced Research Fund. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues. Today we will discuss the development of the Advanced Research Fund. We will consider the implementation of its main projects and how they are assisting the development of applied research. We will look into […]
» Read morePeskov: Surkov, Nuland hold expert dialogue on settlement in Ukraine
(Interfax – January 20, 2016) The negotiations held between Russian Presidential Aide Vladislav Surkov and Victoria Nuland, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs at the United States Department of State, in Kaliningrad with regard to the settlement in Ukraine were an expert exchange of opinions between Moscow and Washington, which is not a member of the ‘Normandy […]
» Read moreU.S., Russia Start Syria Negotiations Amid Threat to Peace Talks
(Bloomberg – bloomberg.com – Henry Meyer – January 20, 2016) The top U.S. and Russian diplomats began talks in Zurich Wednesday to try to bridge divisions over which belligerents in Syria’s five-year civil war should be labeled “terrorist,” an issue that threatens to hold up the start of peace talks. John Kerry and Sergei Lavrov need to strike a deal […]
» Read more