French teacher beheaded by Islamist for teaching: Why refugee status? Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Another brutal Islamist terrorist attack struck France once more. This time, the victim was beheaded for being a teacher and having the audacity to believe in freedom. However, in the mindset of the Islamist, his God…
Turkey increased military sales six-fold to Azerbaijan: Nagorno-Karabakh Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Military sales by Turkey to Azerbaijan have increased six-fold this year. Alongside this, Turkey is utilizing international Islamist terrorists just like in Northern Syria and more recently Libya. Therefore, the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh – and Turkey’s historical animosity…
Prime Minister Suga showing early nationalist signs Kanako Mita and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is showing early nationalist signs even if not overtly. Hence, it is striking that several members of his Cabinet and policies announced seem to have a nationalist slant. Of course, some of this is natural…
Armenia and Azerbaijan clash over Nagorno-Karabakh: Russia needs to warn Turkey Murad Makhmudov and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh are nothing new in recent times. However, with Armenia announcing a general mobilization and imposing martial law, this time the situation appears more dangerous. Both nations have blamed…
Belarus crackdown prompts Hackers to release info of security forces Noriko Watanabe and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times President Lukashenko of Belarus is using the state apparatus against opposition forces. This applies to mass arrests and other methods of coercion. At the same time, the Russian Federation is increasing its support of Lukashenko. However,…
The foreign policy of Japan in the post-Abe period: America, China, Mekong, and Russia Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The geopolitical challenges for Japan throughout Northeast Asia and the Asia Pacific are enormous. Thus with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe resigning then a challenging period will ensue. After all, unlike many other…
Belarus standoff continues while Moscow and Washington appear restrained Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times President Lukashenko of Belarus is using the state apparatus in the hope of quelling opposition forces and that protests will decline. Of course, this might be wishful thinking on his part. Internationally, unlike Ukraine, it appears that…
Japan and South Korea and the GSOMIA merry-go-round: Japan should focus on China and Russia Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The Korean Peninsula is divided between North Korea and South Korea because both Korea’s don’t trust each other. Thus with South Korea repeatedly turning against Japan when relations between both Korea’s…
Belarus protests continue against embattled President Lukashenko Kanako Mita and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times President Lukashenko of Belarus is coming under intense pressure to resign because of major protests and civil disobedience. The geopolitical angle of Belarus is also witnessing a less confrontational approach despite America and the European Union (EU) condemning the…
Belarus protests continue against Lukashenko: Geopolitical tightrope Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Protests are continuing in Belarus against President Lukashenko after the recent national election that activists claim is tainted. At the same time, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya immediately left the country fearing the power of the state apparatus. Therefore, the geopolitical tightrope…
Moscow Develops Next-Generation Combat Infantry System Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Moscow plans to develop and introduce next-generation infantry combat systems (ICS) to further advance this high-technology feature of the modern and future Russian soldier. The current Ratnik (“Warrior”) ICS will be replaced, by 2025, with the new Sotnik (“Centurion”)…
Russian Military Seeking to Counter Growing Chinese Role in Central Asia Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Paul Goble The Jamestown Foundation In March 2019, Dmitry Zhelobov, a specialist on China at Russia’s Urals Federal University, warned that Beijing was shifting from relying on soft power in Central Asia to using hard power. If Russia did…
North Korea and South Korea tensions ratchet up: Moon Jae-in is in a spin Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times North Korea warned South Korea to reign in defectors who were spreading anti-Pyongyang propaganda. Hence, the liaison office designed for communicating between both Korea’s was blown up by North Korea in the…
Russian Navy Prioritizes Tsirkon Hypersonic Missiles Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Moscow’s political-military leadership places growing emphasis on long-range stand-off precision strike systems as a key element in its ongoing modernization program, complementing efforts to strengthen “pre-nuclear” deterrence and offering additional conventional capabilities. One emerging pattern is to equip Russia’s…
US intention in Syria is a quagmire for Russia: Cyprus, Turkey, and Islamists Noriko Watanabe and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The endless conflict in Syria is at a dreaded stalemate where America and Turkey seek an endless quagmire for Syria and the Russian Federation. For America, even if Sunni Islamists have cleansed Alawites,…
Russia’s Aerospace Forces Prepare Training for Kinzhal Hypersonic Missiles Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Russia’s Aerospace Forces (Vozdushno Kosmicheskikh Sil—VKS) are preparing to create a MiG-31K regiment in the Siberian city of Kansk, in the Central Military District (MD), fully equipped with Kh-47M2 Kinzhal hypersonic missiles. The training of flight crews…
Coronavirus infections engulf the Russian Federation but deaths remain low Kanako Mita and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The coronavirus (Covid-19) infection rate in the last week in the Russian Federation is extremely high. However, the population of this nation needs to be considered when witnessing events in Belgium, France, Italy, Spain, and the…
The COVID-19 Pandemic Starts to Have Its Toll on the North Caucasus Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Valery Dzutsati The Jamestown Foundation COVID-19 has now started to spread to Russia’s North Caucasus republics, and regional authorities have been scrambling to mobilize scant resources to stave off the pandemic. As of March 30, officials confirmed infections…
Russian Defense Ministry Preparing for Worst Case COVID-19 Scenario Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Pavel Felgenhauer The Jamestown Foundation On March 24, President Vladimir Putin canceled a visit to St. Petersburg and went instead to the new Kommunarka medical facility on the outskirts of Moscow that was hastily organized as the main specialized COVID-19 treatment…
Islamists in Mozambique take a key town in Cabo Delgado: Wagner, OAM, and Black Hawk Murad Makhmudov and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Increasing Sunni Islamist attacks in northern Mozambique is creating mayhem in a nation already blighted by poverty. Hence, the news that an important town had fallen will have taken authorities by…
Russia sends help against coronavirus during Italy’s hour of need: EU is where? Sawako Utsumi and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The death toll from the coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis in Italy is currently 5,500 people and growing. Equally troubling for Italy, coronavirus is spreading to all parts of the nation in increasing numbers. Therefore,…
Putin and Erdoğan Scramble to Find Workable Idlib Ceasefire Formula Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Pavel Felgenhauer The Jamestown Foundation President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, met for an emergency summit in Moscow on March 5, in a last-ditch attempt to defuse the confrontation in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib.…
Many Turkish soldiers killed in Syria: Turkey is exacerbating the crisis Murad Makhmudov and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times According to reports at least 33 Turkish soldiers have been killed in Syria. This is following on from recent tensions between both nations based on Turkey supporting various Takfiri Islamist groups. At the same time,…
The Inconsistencies of Russia’s Policy on Libya Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Pavel Felgenhauer The Jamestown Foundation During the 1970s and 1980s, the Libyan regime of Muammar Qaddafi was Moscow’s ally in the Cold War against the West, and consequently it acquired many billions of dollars’ worth of Soviet weapons. In more recent years, President…
Germany, the EU, and Russia condemn US sanctions over Nord Stream 2 Noriko Watanabe and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times Germany, the European Union (EU), and the Russian Federation have all condemned America after the White House issued sanctions on companies dealing with Nord Stream 2. Once more, the United States under President Donald…
Russia Adopts National Strategy for Development of Artificial Intelligence Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Sergey Sukhankin The Jamestown Foundation On October 10, Russian President Vladimir Putin approved the National Strategy for the Development of Artificial Intelligence (NSDAI) for the period until 2030. During the unveiling of the new strategy, Putin noted that “the global market…
Russia Exports Its Missile Early-Warning Knowhow to China Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Pavel Felgenhauer The Jamestown Foundation Russo-Chinese relations continue to improve (see EDM, July 25, 30) as both countries’ ties with the United States have grown increasingly strained. Moscow and Beijing describe their bilateral relationship as a “strategic partnership,” constantly adding new adjectives…
NATO Turkey is bombing the Kurds and others while helping ISIS break free in Syria Ramazan Khalidov and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times NATO Turkey is intensifying its attack against the Kurds and other ethnic groups in Northern Syria while the international community just watches. The nations of America, Iran, and the Russian…
Turkey offensive in Syria: Sheepish America, Iran, and Russia but Trump consistency Murad Makhmudov and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times The government of Turkey is laying bare the respective self-interests of America, Iran, and the Russian Federation. Hence, while President Donald Trump is abandoning the Kurds on the ground after the failure of the…
Russia’s Advances in Electronic Warfare Capability Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: Roger McDermott The Jamestown Foundation Since the reform of Russia’s Armed Forces began in late 2008, Moscow has developed a credible conventional military capability. Among the subset of capabilities over the past decade are the critically important advances in combat support offered by Electronic…
Crimea Offers Iran Use of Its Ports for Oil Transport Publication: Eurasia Daily Monitor By: John C. K. Daly The Jamestown Foundation Both Iran and Russia suffer from the United States’ sanctions: the former since the 1979 Islamic revolution, the latter since its 2014 illegal annexation of Crimea. But in a recent bout of creative…
President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation says, “G7 is no good without India and China.” Noriko Watanabe and Lee Jay Walker Modern Tokyo Times President Vladimir Putin of the Russian Federation seeks a genuine multipolar world that takes away the centrism of America, along with the supporting role of fellow nations belonging to the…
