Russia’s War in Ukraine: The War at Sea
The sixth brief in the “Russia’s War in Ukraine” series concerns the war at sea.
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Defence Cooperation
The Baltic States Would Wish Germany’s New Government to Step Up in Defence and Step Back from Russia
As a new government takes power under Chancellor Olaf Scholz, it is opportune to ask what the Baltic states want from Germany in terms of their security, and what might they realistically expect?
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How France-Russia Relations Could Affect the Security of the Baltic Sea Region
President of France, Emmanuel Macron, whose country is currently holding the presidency of the Council of the European Union, does not want the EU to be relegated to the background behind NATO and the US. He wishes to demonstrate his ability to oppose Russia while also maintaining dialogue with Moscow.
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My Taiwanese Neighbour’s Problem Today – Mine Tomorrow
Learning from Russian incursions, and its assertive foreign policy that has seen limited resistance, might encourage China to achieve national rejuvenation before the 2049 deadline by giving up the idea of peaceful unification of Taiwan with China.
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The Age of Renewed Great Power Competition: A Role for ‘Interactive Sincere Powers’
Promotion of cooperation in the Indo-Pacific will serve to connect Europe and Asia. ‘Sincere powers’ should proactively interact with each other and seek to convince the major powers such as China to restrain their behaviour and adhere to the international norms and rules.
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A Relationship of Convenience: Russian-Chinese Defence Cooperation
This analysis examines aspects of the Russian-Chinese defence relationship: its political motivations, trade between the two counties, collaboration in research and procurement, and military-military cooperation including exercises.
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Partner Involvement in NATO Core Business
Occasionally, suggestions are aired about the potential participation of partner nations in NATO activities that are directly related to the Alliance’s core task of collective defence.
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Kavkaz-2020 Exercises: A Preliminary Analysis
On 26 September, the five-day strategic exercise Kavkaz-2020, on the Kapustin Yar testing range in the Astrakhan Region, ended, resulting in the defeat of a mock enemy by a coalition made up of forces from Russia, Armenia, Belarus, China, Myanmar and Pakistan. Bringing together some 80,000 troops (according to official Russian information) from all contributing nations, the exercise was the largest training event carried out by Russia in 2020, involving 250 battle tanks, 450 armoured vehicles and 200 artillery pieces.
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Reducing US Military Presence in Norway
The news that the US Marine Corps is ending continuous troop rotations to Norway and effectively withdrawing 700 troops should be seen in conjunction with the more significant reduction in Germany (11 900) announced only a week earlier. Both weaken European security and the credibility of the United States.
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US Troop Withdrawal: Politics Trumps Strategy
The Pentagon has released some details of its plan to withdraw forces from Germany. The headline figure is now 11 900 troops (coyly described by the Pentagon as “more than 11 000”) compared to the total of roughly 9 500 discussed when the plan was first announced in June. Of these, around 5 600 will be redeployed In Europe, mostly to Belgium and Italy, and around 6 400 returned to the US.
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