ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

A U.S. F-15C Eagle readies for takeoff at Siauliai Air Base in Lithuania on April 1. (PETRAS MALUKAS/AFP/Getty Images) Summary Lacking the capability to secure their sovereign airspace, the Baltic states have long relied upon NATO members to provide assistance and support. As Russia continues to assert itself across its Western periphery, the issue of collective defense has become compelling for many former Soviet states. For countries such as Bulgaria, which can only respond to airspace incursions with a small number of aging aircraft, a mission like the Baltic air patrol would solve many problems. Analysis The NATO Baltic Air Policing mission has been ongoing since March 30, 2004, and provides interceptors for the policing of Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian airspace. The Baltic states currently do not have the assets to provide their own airspace security. Click to Enlarge The mission has been carried out in various rotations, typically lasting two to four months, and is part of th

Summary The stagnation of Venezuela's energy infrastructure is the backdrop for a social and political struggle that has been building for decades. Protests that have rocked the streets of cities from Caracas to San Cristobal since early February seem to be dying down, for the moment . However, this by no means indicates that Venezuela's troubles are over. The country is defined by its contradictions, and deep divisions exist even within seemingly united political groups. For the Venezuelan energy sector, this means that uncertainty will remain prevalent, limiting the government's ability to address key structural concerns. Analysis Venezuela's unrest had long been simmering due to an increasing scarcity of basic goods, soaring inflation and deteriorating physical security throughout the country. But the current wave of protests truly gained traction on Feb. 12 when far-right opposition group Voluntad Popular attracted hundreds of thousands of people to the street, mark

FARC Commander Ivan Marquez reads a statement during peace talks in Havana on April 4.(YAMIL LAGE/AFP/Getty Images) Summary A recent escalation in militant attacks on oil pipelines in eastern Colombia has taken about 3 percent of Colombia's daily oil production offline, according to government figures. Amid the escalation, Colombian state energy firm Ecopetrol on April 7 declared force majeure on some shipments of crude oil. The attacks have affected the Bicentenario and Cano Limon-Covenas oil pipelines. The renewed targeting of oil infrastructure is probably tied to the ongoing negotiations between Bogota and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, also known by its Spanish acronym, FARC. The rebel group, likely in conjunction with the smaller National Liberation Army , or ELN, is probably using the attacks as leverage ahead of the country's presidential election on May 25. Analysis FARC and the Colombian government began the 23rd round of peace talks in Havana on April 4

MOSCOW — The separatist demonstrations again churning through eastern Ukraine have raised fears of a Crimean-style invasion by the 40,000 Russian troops coiled just over the Russian border. But Moscow’s goals are more subtle than that, focused on a long-range strategy of preventing Ukraine from escaping Russia’s economic and military orbit, according to political analysts, Kremlin allies and diplomats interviewed this week. Toward that end, the Kremlin has made one central demand, which does not at first glance seem terribly unreasonable. It wants Kiev to adopt a federal system of government giving far more power to the governors across Ukraine. “A federal structure will ensure that Ukraine will not be anti-Russian,” said Sergei A. Markov, a Russian political strategist who supports the Kremlin. Russian officials have said they envision a system in which the regions elect their own leaders and protect their own economic, cultural and religious traditions — including the forging of inde

DONETSK, Ukraine — Facing threats of forcible eviction by the Ukrainian government, pro-Russian demonstrators who have seized the 11-story government headquarters in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine’s biggest city, suffered a further blow Wednesday when local political barons who share their deep dislike of Ukraine’s new government demanded that they give up and hand over any weapons. The protesters, however, vowed to stand firm, fortifying barricades erected around the Donetsk regional administration building as a thinning crowd of several hundred supporters chanted “Russia, Russia” and cheered calls for President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia to protect them. In Kiev, the Ukrainian capital, Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said at a news conference that demonstrators who have seized buildings in Donetsk and at least two other eastern cities had two options — “political negotiations and force.” He said the crisis would be resolved one way or the other within 48 hours. Interior Ministry troops hav

By Peter Koenig  - Russia has just dropped another bombshell, announcing not only the de-coupling of its trade from the dollar, but also that its hydrocarbon trade will in the future be carried out in rubles and local currencies of its trading partners – no longer in dollars – see Voice of Russia Russia’s trade in hydrocarbons amounts to about a trillion dollars per year. Other countries, especially the BRICS and BRCIS-associates (BRICSA) may soon follow suit and join forces with Russia, abandoning the ‘petro-dollar’ as trading unit for oil and gas. This could amount to tens of trillions in loss for demand of petro-dollars per year (US GDP about 17 trillion dollars – December 2013) – leaving an important dent in the US economy would be an understatement. Added to this is the declaration today by Russia’s Press TV – China will re-open the old Silk Road as a new trading route linking Germany, Russia and China, allowing to connect and develop new markets along the road, especially in Cent

By Sergei Lavrov  " The Guardian " - The profound and pervasive crisis in Ukraine is a matter of grave concern for Russia. We understand perfectly well the position of a country which became independent just over 20 years ago and still faces complex tasks in constructing a sovereign state. Among them is the search for a balance of interests among its various regions, the peoples of which have different historical and cultural roots, speak different languages and have different perspectives on their past and present, and their country's future place in the world. Given these circumstances, the role of external forces should have been to help Ukrainians protect the foundations of civil peace and sustainable development, which are still fragile. Russia has done more than any other country to support the independent Ukrainian state, including for many years subsidising its economy through low energy prices. Last November, at the outset of the current crisis, we supported Kie

Karam Jamal/Reuters Free Syrian Army fighters prepared a homemade missile in Deir al-Zour on Saturday. The city has been one of the centers of fighting since the civil war began. In recent months, the government of President Bashar al-Assad has made gains against the rebels. By ERIC SCHMITT and MARK MAZZETTI ASPEN, Colo. — A senior American intelligence official on Saturday warned that the Syrian conflict could last “many, many months to multiple years,” and described a situation that would most likely worsen regardless of whether the Syrian leader, President Bashar al-Assad , fell. Multimedia Graphic An Arms Pipeline to the Syrian Rebels Video Coverage of the Conflict in Syria The comments by David R. Shedd, the deputy director of the Defense Intelligence Agency , were one of the strongest public warnings about how the civil war in Syria has deteriorated, and he seemed to imply that the response from the United States and its allies had so far been lacking. Mr. Shedd suggested th