ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

ILLUSTRATIVE IMAGE Kurdish militias operating in Syria have allegedly received a batch of man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADs) from the US, according to rumors spread by pro-opposition sources on January 15. Kurdish militias – YPG and YPJ – are a core of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) that control large areas in northwestern and eastern Syria. Opposition sources argue that the US had provided MANPADs to the part of the US-backed forces operating in the area of Afrin in northwestern Syria. However, they were not able to provide any evidence to confirm that the so-called “secret deal” between the sides really exists and the SDF had received the MANPADs. Reports about the MANPADs supplies followed the escalation of tensions between Turkey/pro-Turkish militants and the SDF in northwestern Syria. Turkish forces repeatedly shelled positions of the SDF in the area of Afrin last weekend. The SDF, particularly Kurdish YPG units, responded with shelling positions

Oscar Perez Venezuela’s security forces eliminated a rebel band led by Oscar Perez on Januart 15 in the Caracas neighborhood of El Junquito. Perez, a police pilot, was accused of stealing a helicopter and using it to attack the country’s Supreme Court in June, 2017. President Nicolas Maduro said the rebel group was preparing a car bomb attack against the embassy of an unnamed country. He revealed that a part of the terrorist group “fell down” and five persons were arrested as a result of the operation. The president provided no details how many died or who they were. However, he said that two officers were killed in the siege. Separately, the Interior Ministry added that 5 officers were injured in the operation. Earlier on the same day, Perez posted videos on social media saying his group was under attack.

The Pentagon says that Russia is building an unmanned “drone” submarine that will be capable of delivering large-scale nuclear weapons against U.S. harbors and coastal cities,  The   Washington Free Beacon  (WFB) reports. According to officials, the developmental unmanned underwater vehicle, or UUV, when it is deployed, will be outfitted with megaton-class nuclear warheads that can destroy key ports used by U.S. nuclear-armed and powered submarines like Kings Bay, Georgia, and Puget Sound in Washington state. The WFB noted that details surrounding the secret Russian drone sub are closely held within the U.S. government and intelligence community. The Pentagon has code-named the drone sub “Kanyon,” indicating that the sub is a structured arms program. According to the website, officials said the development of Kanyon is yet another indication of an aggressive nuclear forces modernization that has become a priority for Russian President Vladimir Putin. The development of the sub

By  Mikaprok   As our old friend “mad dog” Mattis once said: “Sequencing the DoD budget is more damaging to our willingness to repel attacks than the enemy on the battlefield.” OK, we got it. It is clear, exactly how the protection of military spending for 2018 will work – they will raise hysterics about Russia-something: “The US military spending has no space to grow. But they must increase from year to year – militarism creates additional labor. In principle, it is not very clear for now, what is more expensive: the mainland or boats that “protect” it. Autumn of FY never goes smoothly. Before the Russian Federation there were similar suspicions regarding China. It is believed that in 2007, terabytes of data concerning the F-35 Lightning II project, which later became the Chinese J-20, were stolen. Then they also discussed and increased the costs of computerization. Oracle concluded the largest single contract in the history of the IT industry and everyone peacefully di

Illustrative image On January 15, the UAE claimed that Qatari fighter jets had intercepted its civilian plane en route to Bahrain describing the move as a contravention of international law. The UAE said that it will take take all necessary measures to protect its civilian aircraft. The UAE General Civil Aviation Authority said that the incident was “a flagrant and dangerous threat to the safety of civil aviation, as well as a blatant violation of international laws and agreements.” However, a spokesperson for the Qatari Foreign Ministry denied the report in an interview with Al Jazeera TV. The reports is another indication of the growing tensions between Qatar and the Saudi-led bloc. In June 2017, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt and the UAE accused Qatar of being a state-sponsor of extremist groups and imposed economic sanctions on the country.

The  US military budget is $824.6 billion . US military spending is larger than the  next nine countries combined . The 2018 year budget of the Russian Defense Ministry  will total $46 bn . Despite the huge difference in expenditure, the military potentials of the two great powers are compared without offering indisputable conclusions. This is a very interesting phenomenon and many people wonder how it is possible. Launching a program of developing a new weapon system is a great responsibility – success is never guaranteed and there are always snags on the way. It’s an open secret that Russia’s R-30 Bulava submarine launched ballistic missile (SLBM) has been plagued with problems. It was not design but rather production quality. Thorough study has been done to overcome the  difficulties . It’s all over now as the recent tests show and the missile with enhanced ability to evade enemy anti-ballistic missile (ABM) defenses has entered service.  Another major program - the PAK FA, n

Written by  Wayne Madsen ; Originally appeared at  strategic-culture.org One of the more welcomed outcomes of the paring back of the US State Department bureaucracy is the elimination of scores of “status quo enthusiasts.” Since the end of World War II, the State Department’s ranks have been populated by foreign service officers and career diplomats who have championed the international status quo. These minions of Foggy Bottom received encouragement for their protective stance on post-World War II and Cold War in President George H. W. Bush’s speech on September 11, 1990, which was titled, “Toward a New World Order.” Under the “new world order,” regional and global security concerns would supplant democratic independence movements. The immediate effect of this “order” was brutal crackdowns on secession in the periphery of the former Soviet Union, including Abkhazia, South Ossetia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Transnistria, as well as in Somalia, the Kurdish regions of Iraq and Turkey, Sudan,

Click to see the full-size image On January 13, Saleh Muslim, a leader of the Syrian Democratic Council (SDC), revealed during an interview with the Hawar News Agency (ANHA) that the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) is planning to enter the northern Idlib governorate to fight “terrorism”. “The plan to enter Idlib is on the agenda of many countries and forces, including our forces [the SDF], and Idlib is a geographical area characterized by mountains, valleys and plains, and we will be up to the responsible of expelling all terrorist forces from it,” Muslim told ANHA. Muslim predicted that all forces in Syria will participate in Idlib’s battle and claimed that Turkish-backed armed groups will not fight against the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) unless Turkey directly participated in the fight. Moreover, the SDC leader stressed that no one can stop the SAA from capturing the strategic Abu Duhur airbase in the eastern Idlib countryside as it is a Syrian land. Muslim also cla