ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

Should the United States have to fight another major conflict with a great power in the near future, some of the weapons the Pentagon will field are the stuff of science fiction. Or, rather, they used to be. As noted by the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, some of those weapons will include laser platforms on warships and fighter jets; wheeled robots that can fire tank-melting missiles; and soldiers that are armed with rifles that transform each of them into snipers. While many of these weapons are still under development, some are just now being fielded, and that is especially true of laser weaponry, which has been under development by the Pentagon for decades. In addition to new weapons, the way the Pentagon wages war will be “more networked that ever, with bullets that provide the ability to detect and destroy foes with ruthless precision, limiting American casualties,” the paper reported. In other words, nothing like World War II, Vietnam or even the first Gulf War. Will critics say many

The Russian government has issued a stark warning to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that his bellicose rhetoric regarding preemptive nuclear strikes on South Korea and the United States could be laying the legal groundwork under international law for a preemptive military strike on his country instead. In a statement issued by the Russian foreign ministry, Moscow said that threats by Pyongyang to deliver “preventative nuclear strikes” are also creating tensions among North Korea’s few remaining allies, which includes Russia. “We consider it to be absolutely impermissible to make public statements containing threats to deliver some ‘preventive nuclear strikes’ against opponents,” the Russian foreign ministry said in response to North Korea’s threats.The Russian foreign ministry statement is also critical of Washington and Seoul for launching the largest joint military drills yet to be held on the peninsula, The Guardianreported. “Pyongyang should be aware of the fact that in this way

The global arms trade is huge. While it’s hard to pin down an exact value of arms transfers, VisualCapitalist's Jeff Desjardins notes the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimates that the number was at least $76 billion in 2013, with the caveat that it is likely higher. The volume of transfers have been trending upwards now for roughly 15 years. Volume of Arms Transfers Courtesy of: SIPRI But where are these arms going? The answer, as VisualCapitalist's Jeff Desjardins explains, is that they are increasingly going to militarize the Middle East, which has increased imports of arms by 61% in 2011-2015, compared to the previous five year period. The Syrian Civil War now entering its sixth year, and it’s clear that conflict is stopping no time soon in the Middle East. As a result of this and the various proxy wars, complicated relationships , and a continuing threat from ISIS, neighboring countries in the region have loaded up on arms. That’s why Saudi Arabia,

The Daesh militant group used chemical weapons for attack on the northern Iraqi town of Taza, a spokesman for Shiite militia al-Hashd ash-Shaabi said Saturday. DAMASCUS (Sputnik) — In February, CIA Director John Brennan said that Daesh had used chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq, and had capabilities to produce small amounts of mustard gas or chlorine gas and possibly export it to the Western countries. "Southern part of Taza has become the target for a heavy attack conducted by Daesh militants. During the attack, the terrorists have launched two missiles rigged with toxic substances from [the settlement of] Kasbah al-Bashir," Ali Huseini said, as quoted by the Al Sumaria television broadcaster. © SPUTNIK/ EXCLUSIVE: Daesh Used Corrosive Chemicals Against Iraqi Civilians (PHOTO, VIDEO) Huseini added that the Iraqi authorities should take steps to provide the region with necessary security, as well as to liberate the region controlled by Daesh . Daesh is a terrorist group, wh

Syrian Army troops and allied popular units have significantly advanced against Daesh terrorists in the southeastern parts of Aleppo province and are now moving towards the Euphrates and its nearby regions in Raqqa province, Iran’s Fars news agency reported. "The Syrian army, Liwa al-Quds (Jerusalem Brigade), the National Defense Forces (NDF) and Kataebat al-Ba’ath (Al-Ba’ath Battalions have secured the southern bank of Al-Hamourat Lake in southeastern Aleppo, while also making a substantial advance towards al-Maskanah Plain," Fars News wrote citing military sources on the ground. © SPUTNIK/ Dealing a Blow: Syrian Army Destroys Daesh Command Center, Firing Positions Near Palmyra On Thursday, government forces seized the main headquarters of the Daesh terrorist group in the northeastern neighborhoods of Khanasser town whose full control was recently won back by Syrian forces. Earlier the Syrian army and volunteer forces retook full control of five villages in close vicinity o

New mercenaries of the US company DynCorp have recently arrived in Yemen to fight rebels in the country. They should replace the mercenaries of the company Blackwater, many of whom had been killed in battle, German newspaper Deutsche Wirtschafts Nachrichten (DWN) reported. The first mercenaries of the private US military company DynCorp arrived on Wednesday at the Yemeni port of Ras Omran southwest of Aden. They will replace Blackwater's mercenaries, since the latter were unable to defeat the Houthi rebels, DWN wrote , citing the Greek newspaper tribune. © AP PHOTO/ HANI MOHAMMED Yemen Receives Just 2% of Required $1.8Bln in Aid In recent weeks, about 39 Blackwater soldiers were killed in Yemen during the fighting. For instance, on February 1 the US Blackwater Commander Nicholas Boutros was killed in battle in the Yemeni province of Lahij. The deployment of new DynCorp soldiers was initiated by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which supports the official government in Sanaa and promi

Clashes intensified on Friday between Shiite rebels and local fighters in the besieged city of Taiz, killing at least 45 fighters on both sides and six civilians over the past 24 hours. The city has seen heavy fighting between rebels known as Houthis and local resistance units financed and armed by the Saudi-led coalition that is backing Yemen's internationally recognized government. The local fighters have been advancing and have taken control of Taiz's western outskirts. The medical officials said Friday that most of the 45 killed over the past 24 hours died in airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition. They also said that six civilians were killed in random shelling of residential areas. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media. According to witnesses, Islamic militants who are fighting next to the local resistance have kidnapped a number of Houthi supporters and members of the ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh's party in

Throttling Turkey’s democracy, President Erdogan seized an opposition newspaper that dared reveal his clandestine arming of jihadists seeking to overthrow neighboring Syria, as Alon Ben-Meir explains. By Alon Ben-Meir Only a few months after Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan raided the offices of the Koza Ipek Media Group, the Turkish police assaulted early this month the offices of Feza Publications, which owns two newspapers (including Zaman) and two TV stations, without any warning. There is little else more injurious to any democracy than closing down news outlets and choking off freedom of speech. To take such an extreme measure based on concocted accusations that such media outlets are aiding terrorism and conspiring against the state is nothing short of scandalous, and shows his fear of public criticism despite his bravado. Turkish President Recep Erdogan. President Erdogan, however, seems completely dismissive of any potential repercussions, as he was emboldened by his pa