ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

The most recent conflict between India and Pakistan is said to be spiraling out of control with acts of violence on both sides of the disputed border said to be escalating to incredibly dangerous levels.  It has been reported that soldiers from the Indian Army have launched a full-scale assault on several Pakistani posts across the Line of Control. The areas which are said to have been targeted are Poonch, Rajouri, Kel and Machil. NO SURGICAL STRIKE ANYMORE  This new action marks a change in direction for the Indian Army in the course of this latest conflict. Previously, they had confined their operations to small ‘surgical attacks’ in a bid to minimize casualties. However, it has been claimed that the Indian authorities were provoked into much larger and violent action after the killings of three Indian soldiers close to the Pakistani-Indian border.  People in Pakistan are reporting that the Indian Army subjected them to heavy artillery fire during the operatio...

While the Russian naval task force is readying for the long-awaited operation in Syria, it’s time to look at its missile capabilities.

The newest USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) guided missile destroyer broke down in the Panama Canal due to a new engineering casualty. USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) guided missile destroyer (Photo: AFP 2016 / US Navy) On Monday evening, the newest USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) broke down, when it was transiting the Panama Canal, USNI News information website reported, citing US Navy officials. According to USNI News, “the ship lost propulsion in its port shaft during the transit and the crew saw water intrusion in two of the four bearings that connect to Zumwalt’s port and starboard Advanced Induction Motors (AIMs) to the drive shafts.” The website explained that the AIMs are “massive electrical motors that are driven by the ship’s gas turbines and in turn electrically power the ship’s systems and drive the shafts.” The destroyer, which was on the way to its home port in San Diego, is now stopped for repairs at the former US Naval Station Rodman, spokesman for the US 3rd Fleet, Cmdr. Ryan Perry, told USN...

According to head of Iran’s Foundation of Martyrs’ and Veterans’ Affairs, Mohammad Ali Shahidi Mahalati, more than 1,000 Iranian military servicemen and volunteers, supporting President Bashar al-Assad, have been killed in Syria. More than 1,000 Iranian military servicemen and volunteers, supporting President Bashar al-Assad , lost their lives during the Syrian war, the Tasnim news agency reported on Tuesday, citing head of Iran’s Foundation of Martyrs’ and Veterans’ Affairs, Mohammad Ali Shahidi Mahalati. “The number of martyrs from our country defending the shrines has now passed 1,000,” Mahalati told the news agency. Military advisers and volunteer fighters, sent by Iran to Syria to work with Assad’s forces and known in Iran as ‘defenders of the shrines’ in reference to Shiite holy sites in Syria, were recruited from Afghanistan and Pakistan. However, Mahalati did not specify the nationalities of those, who were killed. According to Iran, they were sent to fight against Sunni extrem...

Modern agents drink more and more often fail Written by Grigory Yakovlev; Originally appeared at VPK , translated by AlexD exclusively for SouthFront Not one of the 16 intelligence agencies of the USA was able to predict the English exit from the European Union. To recap, the intelligence services of the US Armed Forces are the National Security Agency (NSA), the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), the Army Intelligence and Security Command (INSCOM), the Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI), the Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance of the Air Force (NAF), the Marine Corps Intelligence Activity (MCIA), the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO). After September 11, 2001, the National Counter-Terrorism Center, after a vote from Congress, became part of the CIA’s national centre. All the intelligence agencies, and there are 16 in the US (full listing at VPK, No. 45, 2009 (in Russian only)), were obliged to share information, including l...