By: Simon Miles It has long been acknowledged that Russia possesses a powerful military; but equally broadly accepted that it is in dire need of modernization. Of late, the Russian government of Dmitri Medvedev and Vladimir Putin has been taking steps to rectify this defect and bring the Russian military in line with the standard Read More…
5. Authors of the NCC
A list of authors, past and present
Putin Equivocates His Way to Reform
By Simon A. Miles Following the spate of political protests which transpired in Russia during late 2011, many in the West have wondered what the Putin regime’s response would be. In an earlier article, I argued that Putin would not play the role of Nicholas II in this turbulent time. Recent events have borne this Read More…
Guatemala: Central America’s Most Tormented Nation II
By: Kavita Bapat The advancements to the drug trade made by the Mexican Zeta cartel in Guatemala have turned the nation into more than just a way station for drugs travelling from Colombia to the US. Guatemala is increasingly becoming a storehouse and staging area for drugs awaiting safe passage into Mexico. Although military rule Read More…
Guatemala: Central America’s Most Tormented Nation
By: Kavita Bapat On 8 December, Mexican police seized 205 tons of drug precursor chemicals at the bustling Lazaro Cardenas port. The chemicals originated in China and were destined for Guatemala’s Puerto Quetzal, one of the world’s busiest intersections for illegal drugs. Guatemala’s position as an interlocking state between Colombia and the US along with Read More…
Rebranding Burma
By: Kavita Bapat Friday 18 November marked a decisive shift in Burma’s long-isolated history, as its main opposition leader Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, agreed to rejoin the country’s political system and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton became the first high-ranking American official to visit the Southeast Asian nation in over 50 years. Read More…
Another Roadmap for Afghanistan
By: Kavita Bapat A decade ago, an international conference on Afghanistan in Bonn, Germany, attempted to plan for the future of the war-torn country. At that time, aspirations for a successful transfer of power in Afghanistan, as well as for security and the development of human rights were spoken about. Amid ongoing uncertainty ten years Read More…
Putin on the Precipice
By: Simon A. Miles This round of Russian elections were not intended to produce a surprise result. A “managed democracy” such as Russia with its hobbled opposition, muzzled media, and rampant vote rigging is by its very nature supposed to hand sizeable victories to the ruling party: Vladimir Putin’s United Russia. However, the Duma (parliamentary) Read More…
Emboldened al-Qaeda Offshoot Prompts Western Action
Once considered a quiet front in the global “War on Terror,” the Sahel region of North Africa has become an area of increasing concern for Western governments. Emboldened by mercenaries and heavy weapons crossing out of Libya, al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has engaged in a spree of kidnappings and attacks, prompting Canada, the Read More…
A Modern Missile Gap
By: Simon Miles Russia will deploy its own missiles, with enhanced missile defence penetration technology, if the US and NATO do not halt in their project for a pan-European missile defence network, President Dimitri Medvedev warned. Furthermore, the western enclave of Kaliningrad will be host to a new arsenal of tactical weapons. With obvious relish, Read More…
A Week of Carnage in Afghanistan
By: James Marcus Bridger A brazen succession of insurgent attacks has claimed the lives of over two dozen foreign and Afghan security personnel in the last week. This wave of assaults sparks fresh fears regarding the militants’ continued ability to strike deep within International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) and government-controlled territory. The readiness of the Read More…