ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

By Federico Pieraccini FebruarySince Donald Trump became President of the United States, we have been witnessing some interesting developments in Syria. We have only fragmentary and seemingly unconnected information at this time, but, as one puts the pieces of the puzzle together, it appears likely that some kind of deeper level of coordination between the US and Russia exists. While it cannot be said with certainty, Trump and Putin have probably agreed to cooperate in the fight against Daesh in Syria without making it publicly known. These represent only intentions, especially after the misunderstanding in recent days about joint strikes between Moscow and Washington against Daesh in Syria. The following list is intended to facilitate an understanding of a tentative hypothesis that posits secret coordination between the US and Russia. Let us start with some points concerning recent months. 1. Russia has fought terrorism in Syria for nearly two years, repeatedly requesting the US to co...

Original by Yuriy “yurasumy” Podolyaka published at Naspravdi ; translation from Russian by J.Hawk During the initial phase of the battle at Avdeyevka, the UAF were able to launch a swift and surprise attack and force back NAF forces from their positions near the Yasinovataya cloverleaf. What happened? New UAF tactics One should first of note note that the Kiev regime forces are using new tactics. Each operation is preceded by lengthy preparation (and there is no shortage of time and the front line is static). Then a surprise attack using forces ranging from a platoon to a company. If successful, consolidation on seized positions then defense. If the factor of surprise is lost, immediate retreat to original positions. Why this worked now and not before In 2014-15, well organized intelligence was of great help to the Donbass militia and hampered the Kiev regime forces. The local population loyal to the Republics betrayed its “liberators” in any way it could. Now the situation is diffe...

A video, showing a team of Russian snipers, operating in Syrian province of Aleppo, has been published online. The Russian Special Forces in Syria (Photo: Twitter / miladvisor) A video, showing a process of eliminating of a sniper of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group by a team of Russian snipers, has been published online. The video, captured from a position of Russian snipers, shows two Russian snipers, targeting an IS terrorist, stationed near a stairs of a dilapidated building in Aleppo countryside. The Russian snipers had to shoot four times before to kill the terrorist. One of the users of Reddit provided a translation of the conversation between the sniper and his spotter, captured on the video. Sniper: Can you hit that one? Spotter: He is not visible. We need… Sniper: He only sticks his arm out. Spotter: Here we go, can you see him? Sniper: Yeah. Spotter: There is a rope’s end. And… there is an arm. Sniper: Yeah… Spotter: By the way, we could try to hit an arm. Firs...

The US-led coalition’s air power has destroyed a water supply system in the Syrian city of Raqqa. Photo: US Air Force / Master Sgt. Ralph Hallmon / AP On Thursday, a water supply system in the Syrian city of Raqqa, which is considered to be the capital of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group in the country, was destroyed by a series of airstrikes, carried out by the US-led coalition on two bridges over the Euphrates River, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) reported on Friday. Reportedly, the northern and southern parts of the city were connected only by these bridges. Earlier in January, a number of media reported that fighter jets of the US-led coalition have been targeting Syria’s infrastructures that were abandoned by IS terrorists. Earlier this year, spokesman for the Russian Defense Ministry , Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, said that Syrian infrastructure has been systematically bombed by the US-led coalition’s air power since 2012, while its aircraft have not been ta...

Written and produced by SF Team: Brian Kalman, Daniel Deiss, Edwin Watson The U.S. Army has been plagued with costly acquisition failures in recent decades, chief amongst them the Future Combat System (FCS) program. This $200 billion program initiated in 2000, the largest U.S. military acquisition program ever attempted, failed to produce results on a multitude of levels and was abandoned by 2009. The Armored Ground Vehicle (AGV) and Armored Gun System (AGS) programs also wasted tens of billions of dollars before being cancelled without achieving their intended goals. These programs were chiefly defeated by an overly bureaucratic Army acquisition system, and the fact that the Army had asked for far too much from the defense industry, demanding many new and unproven technological advancements. The FCS was the most expensive, most ambitious, and most transformative modernization program ever undertaken by the U.S. Army. It is often hypothesized that the U.S. experience in the first Gulf ...