ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

THAIER AL-SUDANI/REUTERS - Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, shown Jan. 12, said he is “satisfied that we will achieve victory against al-Qaeda.” By Loveday Morris and Ernesto Londoño, Published: January 16 | Updated: Friday, January 17, 1:05 AM BAGHDAD — Iraq has asked the United States for new arms to beat back the dramatic resurgence of al-Qaeda-linked militants in a western province and would like U.S. troops to train its counter­terrorism forces, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said in an interview Thursday. The Iraqi leader said he provided the wish list after a phone call with Vice President Biden on Tuesday. U.S. officials said it might be easy to deliver those weapons, which include assault rifles and artillery, to Baghdad soon. Some is on hand, and we can supply it quickly,” a senior American diplomat said Thursday, speaking on the condition of anonymity to be candid. The request for stepped-up U.S. assistance is adding urgency to a debate over the types of weapons that

Mexican newspaper reveals secret arrangement between DEA and Sinaloa cartel By Per Liljas - " Time " - The U.S. government allowed the Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel to carry out its business unimpeded between 2000 and 2012 in exchange for information on rival cartels, an investigation by El Universal claims . Citing court documents, the Mexican newspaper reports that DEA officers met with top Sinaloa officials over fifty times and offered to have charges against cartel members dropped in the U.S., among other pledges. Dr. Edgardo Buscaglia, a senior research scholar in law and economics at Columbia University, says that the tactic has been previously used in Colombia, Cambodia, Thailand and Afghanistan. “Of course, this modus operandi involves a violation of public international law, besides adding more fuel to the violence, violations of due process and of human rights,” he told El Universal. Myles Frechette, a former U.S. ambassador to Colombia, said while that the problem of

By Nick Turse January 16, 2014 - They operate in the green glow of night vision in Southwest Asia and stalk through the jungles of South America. They snatch men from their homes in the Maghreb and shoot it out with heavily armed militants in the Horn of Africa. They feel the salty spray while skimming over the tops of waves from the turquoise Caribbean to the deep blue Pacific. They conduct missions in the oppressive heat of Middle Eastern deserts and the deep freeze of Scandinavia. All over the planet, the Obama administration is waging a secret war whose full extent has never been fully revealed -- until now. Since September 11, 2001, U.S. Special Operations forces have grown in every conceivable way, from their numbers to their budget. Most telling, however, has been the exponential rise in special ops deployments globally. This presence -- now, in nearly 70% of the world’s nations -- provides new evidence of the size and scope of a secret war being waged from Latin America to

The interior of an advanced microscope used to observe objects on a nanoscale. (Kristian Molhave/Wikimedia) Summary The potential of science to advance technology -- and therefore empower those who wield it -- has been a constant throughout history, much like the geographical constraints that shape the actions and attitudes of nations. Select technologies, such as the development of motorized transport, have changed the relationship between humans and their immediate surroundings . The field of nanotechnology is one such area that has the potential to dramatically alter the ways in which people and organizations interact with their environment. Advancements in basic science allow for a better understanding of key processes, providing a solid foundation on which to develop and build new technologies. For manufactured systems that exploit chemical reactions, like fuel cells, batteries or solar panels, this foundation starts with an understanding of the mechanism itself -- the chemical r

Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L) and Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban (R) speak during a meeting at Putin's residence outside Moscow, on January 14, 2014. (YURI KOCHETKOV/AFP/Getty Images) Summary Despite its strained economy, Russia is reverting to its common tactic of issuing loans to achieve some of its diplomatic and political goals. On Jan. 13, former Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin warned that the government's decision to extend a $15 billion loan to Ukraine from Russia's National Wealth Fund poses a risk to Moscow's portfolio, noting that without economic reform, Ukraine will find it difficult to repay the loan. The day after his warning, the Russian Finance Ministry announced that Russia's Reserve Fund lost 25.57 billion rubles (some $765 million) in December, while the National Welfare Fund lost 22.15 billion rubles. Though lending money to neighbors may appear financially irresponsible at this time, it is actually a calculated mov

Israel has been stealing nuclear secrets and covertly making bombs since the 1950s. And western governments, including Britain and the US, turn a blind eye. But how can we expect Iran to curb its nuclear ambitions if the Israelis won't come clean? Julian Borger Israel's nuclear reactor at Dimona. Photograph: Getty Images Deep beneath desert sands, an embattled Middle Eastern state has built a covert nuclear bomb, using technology and materials provided by friendly powers or stolen by a clandestine network of agents. It is the stuff of pulp thrillers and the sort of narrative often used to characterise the worst fears about the Iranian nuclear programme. In reality, though, neither US nor British intelligence believe Tehran has decided to build a bomb, and Iran 's atomic projects are under constant international monitoring. The exotic tale of the bomb hidden in the desert is a true story, though. It's just one that applies to another country. In an extraordin

By Felicity Arbuthnot January 15, 2014 - A “devastating” two hundred and fifty page document: “The Responsibility of UK Officials for War Crimes Involving Systematic Detainee Abuse in Iraq from 2003-2008″, has been “presented to the International Criminal Court, and could result in some of Britain’s leading defence figures facing prosecution for “systematic” war crimes” the (London) Independent on Sunday has revealed.(i) The dossier charges that: ‘ “those who bear the greatest responsibility” for alleged war crimes “include individuals at the highest levels” of the British Army and political system.’ Among those named, states the Independent, are two former Defence Ministry supremos, Geoff Hoon and Adam Ingram, Defence Secretary and Minister of State for the Armed Forces, respectively, under Tony Blair’s premiership, during the planning and invasion of Iraq and for most of the UK’s occupation. General Sir Peter Wall, head of the British Army is also named. Shocking allegations have be

The Naval Update Map shows the approximate current locations of U.S. Carrier Strike Groups and Amphibious Ready Groups, based on available open-source information. No classified or operationally sensitive information is included in this weekly update. CSGs and ARGs are the keys to U.S. dominance of the world's oceans. A CSG is centered on an aircraft carrier, which projects U.S. naval and air power and supports a Carrier Air Wing, or CVW. The CSG includes significant offensive strike capability. An ARG is centered on three amphibious warfare ships, with a Marine Expeditionary Unit embarked. An MEU is built around a heavily reinforced and mobile battalion of Marines. Carrier Strike Groups The USS Harry S. Truman CSG with CVW 3 embarked is underway in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility supporting maritime security operations and conducting theater security cooperation efforts. Amphibious Ready Groups/Marine Expeditionary Units The USS Boxer ARG with the 13th MEU embarke