ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

World War III — the first (and final) nuclear war — has never been so likely as it is now. Eric Zuesse, originally posted at strategic-culture.org Here is the reason why we are currently even closer to a civilization-ending nuclear war than was the case during the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962: During the Cold War, the two sides agreed that any war between the capitalist side and the communist side would escalate to nuclear war between the US and the USSR and constitute Mutually Assured Destruction (M.A.D.). Therefore, because of this mutual acceptance of M.A.D., hot war did not develop during that entire period, from 1945 till the Soviet Union dissolved and ended its military alliance the Warsaw Pact, both of which ended in 1991. Throughout that 45-year period, called «the Cold War», there was no hot war between the two nuclear superpowers, because both sides believed that any hot war would end in M.A.D. — mutual annihilation, and the end of civilization. It would end that way becau...

The Russian Air Force carried out several airstrikes over the western countryside of Aleppo on Monday, targeting Jaysh Al-Fateh's (Army of Conquest) positions at several sites located west of the city. According to an Al-Masdar field correspondent, the Russian Air Force specifically targeted Mansourah, Khan Al-Assal, Rashideen 4, and Rashiddeen 5 near the recently captured Minyan and Al-Assad suburbs. The field correspondent added that the Russian Air Force launched an estimated 30 airstrikes over west Aleppo today in order to weaken the jihadist defenses at Khan Al-Assad and Rashiddeen 5. The aforementioned sites attacked by the Russian Air Force this morning are considered the Syrian Arab Army's (SAA) targets for their upcoming west Aleppo offensive that is scheduled to be launched in the coming weeks.

Photo: Dmitry Rogulin/TASS Crews of Tu-160 and Tu-95 long-range strategic gombers are on combat alert in the Engels Air Force Base in the Russian region of Saratov, the Russian state-run TASS news agency reported Sunday, citing a military diplomatic source. According to the report Tu-160 and Tu-95 strategic bombers are now being prepared for combat missions and loaded with cruise missiles. At the same time, the Russian Navy’s task force for Syria is also reading for combat missions in the country. The Russian strategic bombers, Tu-160, Tu-95 and Tu-22M have been involved in the Russian military operation in Syria since its start in 2015. Tupolev Tu-22M Bombers in Action over Syria