Members of the 173rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Airborne) will arrive in Poland on Wednesday to participate in a series of exercises. US Army Photo
The U.S. will send more than 600 troops for a training mission in Poland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, Pentagon spokesman Rear Adm. John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday. Read More
Russian Borey Class nuclear ballistic missile submarine
Two of Russia’s newest nuclear submarines will begin sea trials this summer, according to state media reports. Read More
Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Donald Cook (DDG-75) transits the Dardanelles en route to the Black Sea. US Navy Photo
A Russian fighter spent 90 minutes making low-level passes near a U.S. ballistic missile defense (BMD) guided missile destroyer on station in the Black Sea, a defense official told USNI News on Monday.
In Tartu Estonia, there is a building on the main square, constructed on an uncertain foundation that leans precipitously. The locals call it the “Leaning House” or the “Pisa Building.” Ironically, it leans to the west, appearing something like a hunting hound straining at the leash to be loosed to run after its quarry. In this case, though, complex histories, and Russia, are the leash.
An anti-Putin protester. Reuters Photo
This is the second of two articles on the current crisis in Ukraine and on possible policy options for the international community. The first was on history of conflict in the region.
The Ukraine’s current turmoil and the standoff in the Crimea make for a complex strategic issue in Russia’s near-abroad, where Russia holds many of the cards to advantage.
But the leaders of Western Europe, Ukraine, and the United States are not bereft of policy options either. Read More
Russian troops in the Crimea region of Ukraine. Reuters Photo
This is the first of two articles on the current crisis in Ukraine and on the history of conflict in the region. The second will outline possible policy options for the international community.
The events of the last three weeks have catapulted Ukraine to the forefront of the U.S. policy agenda, sparking an intense crisis of confidence between the United States and Russia—the worst since 1979. Read More
From the Congressional Research Service March, 5 2014 report, Russian Political, Economic, and Security Issues and U.S. Interests.
Russia made uneven progress in democratization during the 1990s, but this limited progress was reversed after Vladimir Putin rose to power in 1999-2000, according to many observers. Read More
USS Farragut (DDG-99) arrives in Severomorsk, Russia for a two-day visit after completing exercise Northern Eagle 2012. Russian Navy Photo
Planning for the biennial Northern Eagle exercise between Russia, the U.S. and Norway has been “put on hold,” while the U.S. says troops have massed on the ground in the Crimea region of Ukraine, a military official told USNI News on Tuesday. Read More
Elements of Russia’s Northern Fleet. RIA Novosti Photo
Russia is forming a new Northern Fleet-Unified Strategic Command dedicated to protecting its interests in the Arctic Circle before the end of 2014, RIA Novosti reported on Monday. Read More
An attack from Chechen terrorists timed to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia is becoming increasingly likely, according to an expert in terrorism in the North Caucasus region of Russia, a Chechen terrorism expert told USNI News. Read More
