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Malta raises alarm on Russia in Libya
By Eric Maurice, Nikolaj Nielsen, and Andrew Rettman, euobserver 2017 01 16
A Russian-backed Libyan warlord could start a “civil war” in Libya, increasing refugee flows to the EU, Malta has warned.The danger comes as the Libyan commander, Khalifa Haftar, advances on Tripoli, the seat of the UN-recognised government, Malta’s foreign minister, George Vella, told press in Valletta on Friday (13 January).
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Russia Looks for an Exit in Syria
Stratfor 2017 01 06
Forecast
Despite the shared cause of supporting Damascus, Moscow and Tehran will continue to differ in their commitment to the conflict.
As Russia concocts an exit strategy, its relations with Iran will steadily sour.
The divergences between the countries will exacerbate the differences among Syria's loyalist forces.
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The Power Vertical: Putins Perfect Storm
Brian Whitmore, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty 2016 12 30
Waging a guerrilla war
One announcement came from Berlin. Another came from Washington. And they came weeks apart.
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The Glazyev Tapes, Origins ofthe Donbass Conflict, and Minsk Agreements
By Andreas Umland 2016 12 28
What are the origins of the armed conflict that has been raging in eastern Ukraine since 2014? Which role did Russia play in the emergence and escalation of the originally unarmed confrontation, in the Donets Basin (Donbas), after the victory of the Euromaidan revolution? When, how and to what degree exactly did Moscow get involved? Which relative weight did local sources of the conflict have when compared to the impact of foreign factors, i.e. the Kremlin’s covert actions in Ukraine? These and similar questions are not only academic topics hotly debated in Ukraine and the West. The way one answers them will also have far-going implications for Western thinking, policies and diplomacy with regard to Russia and Ukraine, during the next years. Recently, new evidence and research has emerged that is clarifying the picture.
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Russia Seen Moving New Missiles To Eastern Europe
Geoff Brumfiel, Parallels 2016 12 12
In what could mark an escalation of tensions with the West, commercial satellite images suggest that Russia is moving a new generation of nuclear-capable missiles into Eastern Europe.
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NATO’s Vulnerable Link in Europe: Poland’s Suwalki Gap
BY Agnia Grigas, Atlantic Council 2016 11 14
The Pentagon's decision to quadruple its 2017 budget for European defence due to the perceived threat of Russian aggression and the recent RAND report noting the difficulties NATO would have defending the Baltic States, are once again bringing to the forefront the risks on Europe's frontier states. The top brass of US military forces, like U.S. Army Europe commander Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, have also already noted that a narrow piece of land connecting two NATO member states Poland and Lithuania – the Suwalki Gap ‒ could potentially be a target of Russian military aggression. Capture by hostile forces of Suwalki or bordering Lithuanian territory would cut off the three Baltic States from other NATO countries. Analysts have likened Suwalki to the Cold War era's Fulda Gap in Germany where NATO planned and prepared for hypothetical Soviet attacks. In addition to the region's problematic geography and militarized environment due to neighbouring Kaliningrad and Belarus, the Suwalki Gap is different and potentially an even more vulnerable target because the Kremlin could exploit the region's historic ethnic tensions.
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Syrian Civil War Map
Shakeeb Asrar, Al Jazeera 2016 10 04
A map of the Syrian civil war that shows who controls what after five years of fighting.
After years of civil war, Syria is now a country that lies in ruins. Thousands of people have died, millions have fled. With no end of the war in sight, groups continue to battle for control over large parts of the country. The Syrian government, ISIL, Kurdish factions, and several other rebel groups are still fighting for some of the most important parts of the country. |
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Data visualization nato Russia exercises
2016 06 10
In the event of current NATO military exercises in the Baltic States (the “Saber Strike”) and in Poland (“Anakonda-16), Russia revolts at NATO for threatening its security.
See the information below on military exercises of NATO and Russia in 2013-2015. (Date of the exercise, title, venue and the number of solders present). Sources: News agency “Reuters”, NATO, North Atlantic Council, weekly “The Moscow Times” and the news agency “Ria Novosti”.
Now, are NATO exercises really threatening Russia thereby?
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Why Russia Harasses U.S. Aircraft
2016 04 30
Stratfor
Summary
Since Russia annexed Crimea in 2014, tension with the West has been high, affecting eastern Ukraine, Syria and hot spots across the former Soviet sphere. Less overtly, Moscow has been working to protect areas vital to Russian interests by raising the stakes of U.S. operations there. This has manifested in numerous aggressive interceptions of U.S. military aircraft in flight, especially over the Black and Baltic seas. The interceptions, which are reportedly occurring more frequently, aim to dissuade Washington from operating in that airspace. |
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How to Fill Ukraine’s Security Vacuum
By Andreas Umland 2016 04 15
Ukraine faces a mounting challenge from the East while suffering from a fundamental security vacuum. The country is not embedded in international organizations able to help Kyiv secure the Ukrainian state’s territorial integrity and political sovereignty. What other options than the distant prospect of NATO membership does Ukraine have to fill this vacuum today? The only feasible solution with at least some chance of being realized is to revive an old Polish plan known as Intermarium—a union of the lands between the seas.
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Solving Ukraine’s Security Dilemma
By Andreas Umland 2016 04 14
A main reason for the recent escalation of tensions in Eastern Europe is the absence of an effective security structure encompassing such militarily weak countries as Moldova, Georgia, and Ukraine. While Ukrainian public opinion has recently made a U-turn from a rejection to an embrace of NATO, the Alliance will not be ready to extend its commitments farther east anytime soon. Although future enlargement of the Alliance is possible, Ukraine’s confrontation with Russia as well as Moscow’s anti-Western stance would have to decrease significantly for that to happen. Recently, the opposite tendency was on display: The more aggression the Kremlin has shown, the less likely it is that the North Atlantic Council will open its doors to new members in conflict with Moscow.
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Lessons from Russia’s intervention in Syria
Commentary, Gustav Gressel, ECFR 2016 02 08
Since the Russian armed forces intervened in the Syrian civil war on 29 August 2015, assessments of their military capabilities differ considerably.
To some, the display of Russian firepower and mobility is a fearsome reminder of the increased Russian military capabilities. For others, the limited success of the Russian campaign so far is an indication of the still-faulty military equipment and limited availability of first-rate weaponry leading them to conclude that Russia would be no meaningful military threat to NATO. The Syrian campaign is very different from a war on NATO's eastern frontier making conclusions about Russia's military threat difficult. But some trends are readable. |
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Ukraine has filed a lawsuit against Russia in the International Court of Justice for terrorism and racism (66) 2017 01 19
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine filed a lawsuit in the UN International Court of Justice against Russia within the framework of the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, says the site of the Foreign Minister. This is done on the instructions of the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, issued on 16 January.
National Armed Forces (NAF) of Latvia will deploy additional military units in three cities (85) 2017 01 18

For effective complex defence of Latvia, the establishment of a permanent division of the National Armed Forces has started in Latgale, reported the official website of the Ministry of Defence.
In Lithuania the amount of 110 thousand Euros was collected at a concert in support of the ATO fighters and residents of Donbass (39) 2017 01 17

On 13 January a concert "Together to the victory" was held in Lithuania, where the audience decided to support Ukraine's defence and donated 110 thousand Euros.
Belarus has established a visa-free regime for citizens of 80 countries (2) 2017 01 10

Alexander Lukashenko on 9 January signed a decree № 8 "On the establishment of visa-free entry and exit of foreign nationals." The document establishes visa-free entry to Belarus for a period not exceeding 5 days at the entrance through the checkpoint "National Airport Minsk" for citizens of 80 countries, - reported the press service of the President of Belarus.
The European Parliament approved the recall of visas for citizens of Ukraine and Georgia (3) 2016 12 19

The European Parliament approved the granting of a visa-free regime for short-term trips to the citizens of Ukraine and Georgia, RIA Novosti reported.
The US House of Representatives approved actions against the influence of Russia 2016 12 08
The US House of Representatives approved a bill on establishing an inter-departmental body, the purpose of which would be to resist Russian attempts of "influencing the people and the governments" of other countries, - reported the Associated Press.
Alexander Parkhomenko. The pro-Russian (not already) President of Moldova, who was seated by the Russian Federation, stated about the way towards the EU 2016 12 02
Techno HUNDRED
"I back up": networks got surprised with the unexpected statement of the pro-Russian President Dodon about the EU.
The newly elected president of Moldova Igor Dodon, known for his pro-Russian views, stated that his country is not going to refuse from the cooperation with the European Union.
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