Photo by Daria Volkova on Unsplash Throughout modern history, the Russian Federation has carried out numerous armed conflicts on the territory of other states and republics: the two Chechen wars, the occupation of Transdnistria, the war in Abkhazia, the Russian-Georgian war, and the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war. The war in Ukraine shows that the Russian authorities are trying to…
Photo by Dylan Hunter on Unsplash On 11 May, the US ambassador to South Africa, Reuben Brigeti, said he was aware of arms shipments from the republic to Russia. This precedent occurred in the first decade of December 2022, when the Russian ship Lady R was in the port of Simonstown, where, under conditions of strict secrecy, a…
Photo by Edoardo Ceriani on Unsplash Putin has consistently prepared for war with the West, which he considers a response to Russia’s “historic humiliation” – the collapse of the USSR. After the end of the Second Chechen War, Russia immediately began to accumulate military resources for territorial expansion in the post-Soviet space, no country within which the Kremlin…
Photo by Stephanie LeBlanc on Unsplash The EU’s €90 million preparatory action on defence research (PADR) was only partially useful in priming the EU for significantly ramping up its defence spending and paving the way for the €8 billion European Defence Fund (EDF), according to a report by the European Court of Auditors. Projects funded under the PADR…
Photo by Orkhan Farmanli on Unsplash Accordng to the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Azerbaijan, on 11 April units of the Armed Forces of Armenia fired on the Azerbaijan Army’s defensive positions stationed in the Lachin district. As a result of this unprovoked assault, several servicemen of the Azerbaijan Army were killed or injured. The Armenian…
Photo by Yu Kato on Unsplash A senior MEP says that China supplying weapons to Moscow “would be a slap in Europe’s face.” Reinhard Bütikofer was speaking as Emmanuel Macron and Ursula von der Leyen met Xi Jinping in Beijing on Thursday. The two leaders sent a message of unity – even as China is said by some…
Photo by Lucas Marcomini on Unsplash Finland shares a lengthy and vulnerable border of 1,340 km with Russia. As the only non-NATO EU member with any such frontier it has long been wary of its larger neighbour. This wariness is not just because of present behaviour but because of the past: in 1939 the USSR…
Photo by Dylan Hunter on Unsplash The EU needs to respond immediately to the hybrid threat from Russia: Putin is training professional killers and criminals to destabilise Europe For years, Russia has been building an agent network among national diasporas in various EU countries. It has exploited the freedom of speech in democratic European countries, organising and holding…
Photo by Ying Ge on Unsplash Russia is deliberately introducing mercenaries, experienced in combat operations and committing terrorist attacks into Europe. The militants of the Wagner Group, notorious for their involvement in wars and conflicts around the world, occupy the palm of precedence. In particular, it is alarming that there is a sharp decline in the number of…
Photo by Ahmed Zalabany on Unsplash Vladimir Putin has been planning the annexation of Ukrainian territory for years; long before the full-scale offensive he was preparing the ground to enable him to carry out his criminal actions as quickly as possible. It is for this reason that Russian money has been spent on creating a loyal environment in…
