ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

Do Not to Seek North Korean Regime Change By Ting Shi and David Tweed Beijing, Moscow worked to weaken sanctions on North Korea China says it will never allow war on Korean peninsula. In supporting a watered-down version of North Korea sanctions, China and Russia had a stern warning for the U.S.: Don’t try to overthrow Kim Jong Un’s regime. The measures passed on Monday  at the United Nations Security Council included reducing imports of refined petroleum products, banning textile exports and strengthening inspections of cargo ships suspected of having illegal materials. U.S. envoy Nikki Haley called them the “strongest measures ever imposed on North Korea” even though they ended up dropping demands for an oil embargo and freeze on Kim’s assets. More worrisome for China and Russia was Haley’s remark that the U.S. would act alone if Kim’s regime didn’t stop testing missiles and bombs. The UN representatives of both countries on Monday reiterated what they called “ the four n

Members of the Taliban gather in Ghazni province, Afghanistan, April 18, 2015. FILE IMAGE: voanews.com On September 12,  Taliban fighters captured Broghan and Jwdana areas of Khaibar district  in a rapid attack, according to the Taliban news agency Voice of Jihad.  Voice of Jihad also reported clashes with the Afghan Army and Police are still ongoing in the newly captured areas. Voice of Jihad also announced that Taliban fighters captured  a check point of the Afghan Army in in Moqani area of Pashtun Kot district . Moreover,  a commander of the Afghan army and two of his guards were killed  after Taliban fighters targeted their armored vehicle on Herat highway in Kandyal area of Zarhi district earlier on September 13, according to Voice of Jihad. Meanwhile, Kapisa province police chief Abdul Razaq Yaqoubi said that  3 Taliban commanders were killed  on September 10 after a bomb they were making exploded. According to Yaqoubi the three Taliban commanders were busy attachin

The South Korean Air Force has conducted  its first live-fire exercise for the long-range Taurus missile , the Yonhap News Agency  reported citing the country’s air force. The air-to-surface missile has a range of 500 km. It was “introduced from Germany for precision bombing of key facilities in North Korea” , Yonhap News Agency added. The missile is capable of carrying out precision attacks on targets in the North Korean capital Pyongyang, “even if it is fired as far as from the central part of South Korea.” The exercise took place over Taean, South Chungcheong Province, on Tuesday.  A F-15K fighter jet fired a Taurus missile that flew about 400 km and hit a target in the coastal waters off Gunsan, North Jeolla Province. Earlier this week, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) imposed a new round of sanctions on North Korea over its sixth nuclear test.  North Korea responded  claiming that the new sanctions were an act of “heinous provocation” and that they strengthene

Click to see the full-size map The military situation is developing rapidly in the province of Deir Ezzor as the ISIS-held area is shrinking  under the pressure of the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), backed up by the Russian Aerospace Forces, and the Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), supported by the US-led coalition. On September 13,  the SAA, the Syrian Republican Guard (SRG), Hezbollah and other pro-government factions continued operations against ISIS in the Deir Ezzor area and advanced on ISIS positions at Jafrah, al-Mariiyah and ar-Rouad. Tactical goals of the SAA and its allies in eastern Syria are: to secure the northwestern flank of the government-held city,  liberating ar-Rouad and the army storage base. If the ISIS defense collapses in the area, the SAA and its allies may push towards al-Baghiliyah. However, this is not a top priority right now because the Syrian-Iranian-Russian alliance has much more important task on the ground; to secure the entire ar

FILE IMAGE: Russian Military Police service members are in Syria On Wednesday, several sources said that Russia, Turkey and Iran are about to reach a de-escalation agreement in Idlib province. It’s expected that the agreement will be agreed upon in Astana talks on Thursday. However, sources from Astana said that many issues related to the supposed agreement were still un-solved. Forces from Russia, Turkey and Iran will monitor the de-escalation zone in Idlib province , according to a report of the Russian state-run media outlet RT. Moreover, RT said that  Egypt was intested in monitoring the de-escalation zone in Idlib too. Meanwhile,  the UK-based Asharq al-Awsat newspaper claimed that Russia, Turkey and Iran are about to launch a military operation against Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in Idlib.  Turkish-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA) groups will be the main force on the ground in the spouse operation, and it will be backed by the Russian and Turkish Air Forces, according to

mod.gov.sy The Syrian Arab Army (SAA), Hezbollah and their allies are advancing against  ISIS in the area of Jaffrah located on the western bank of the Euphrates River near Deir Ezzor Airport. Jaffrah is one of the key remaining ISIS strong points near Deir Ezzor Airport.  If government troops are able to fully secure it, they will further tighten siege on ISIS units inside the  northern part of Deir Ezzor city and to set a foothold for a possible operation to corss the Euphrates River. It looks that ISIS commanders understand this. This is why the terrorist group strongly opposes to the SAA advance in the area. Map shows a possible SAA operation aimed at crossig the Euphrates River: Click to see the full-size image Despite some reports that the SAA is not going to cross the Euphrates River.  It’s unlikely that the idea is abandoned by the Syrian-Iranian-Russian alliance. The full liberation of Deir Ezzor city will take a notable time that will be used by ISIS in orde

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the defence detachment on Mahap Islet in the western sector of the front in this undated photo released by KCNA. KCNA via Reuters North Korea has vowed to increase its military strength and to boost its nuclear program in response to a new round of “evil” United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions. North Korean Foreign Ministry called the sanctions an act of “heinous provocation” adding that the new economic restrictions strengthened the country’s desire to build nuclear weapons. The ministry said in a statement that the resolution “served as  an occasion for the DPRK to verify that the road it chose to go down was absolutely right , and to strengthen its resolve to follow this road at a faster pace without the slightest diversion until this fight to the finish is over.” “ Since the scheme of the U.S. to impede the DPRK’s development, disarm it through the unprecedented sanctions and pressure, and conquer it with the help of n

German soldiers after taking part in a drill on June 29. JOHN MACDOUGALL / AFP – Getty Images Germany has frozen all major arms exports to Turkey, the country’s foreign minister Sigmar Gabriel said on Monday explaining that the decision was made due to the deteriorating human rights situation in the country and increasingly strained ties to its NATO ally. “ We have put on hold all big requests (for arms exports) that Turkey has sent to us, and these are really not a few, ” the minister said during a panel discussion organized by German business daily Handelsblatt. He added that Germany is obliged to send arms to a NATO ally, if requested. However, this is currently not possible. On Tuesday, Turkey’s EU Affairs Minister, Omer Celic, responded to Germany’s decision. “ This decision will weaken Turkey’s fight against terrorism, and weakening the Turkish fight would mean making Europe’s future more vulnerable, ” he said. “Germany must leave security issues out of political