With all the focus on Syria, and particularly on growing tensions between Russia and Turkey, it’s important to understand the complicated regional dynamics in the Middle East. How is Russia’s relationship with Israel and Iran playing out? What is Iran’s end game? How does the Syrian conflict really fit into a wider regional or sectarian […]
Tag: Israel
Putin in Syria: Russia Shifting Attention To Southern Front
LIVE UPDATES: Russian jets have struck targets in the southern Daraa province for the second time this week, with reports of coordination with the Lebanese military and Hezbollah ahead of a Syrian regime offensive in the area. The previous post in our Putin in Syria column can be found here. Rocket And Air Strikes On […]
Moscow’s Relations With West Will Recover If Russia Remains Capitalist
Staunton, December 16 – Mikhail Budaragin, the editor of the pro-Kremlin United Russia Party’s official website, says that Moscow’s relations with the West “will not last forever” and that Moscow can look forward to a return to normal as long as it remains committed to capitalism and does shift to another “economic model.” Budaragin’s comment […]
Ukraine Live Day 282: Heavy Fighting In Lugansk Region
Yesterday’s live coverage of the Ukraine conflict can be found here. An archive of our liveblogs can be found here. For an overview and analysis of this developing story see our latest podcast. Please help The Interpreter to continue providing this valuable information service by making a donation towards our costs. View Ukraine: April, 2014 […]
Russian Military Intelligence Coordinating Syrian-Iranian Attacks on Rebels, Spying on Israel
The Syrian rebels, in what appears to be a joint operation between several Free Syrian Army (FSA) brigades, have captured an important Syrian Army installation overlooking to town of Al Harra (or Tal Harra), in Daraa province (map). The capture of the base would be significant news in and of itself. The base towers above […]
Russian Speakers Abroad ‘Not a Community, Not a Diaspora, and Not a Single Ethnos’
Staunton, May 16 – Vladimir Putin routinely asserts that Russian speakers abroad, a category which includes both those of ethnic Russian background and others who use Russian in their daily lives, are not only a single nation but one that requires the continuing protection of the Russian state. But a new study shows that the […]
Paul Craig Roberts: Truther as Patriot
“During the decade that has passed (since 9/11), numerous 9/11 Truth organizations have formed. There are Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth, Firefighters for 9/11 Truth, Pilots for 9/11 Truth, Scholars for 9/11 Truth, Remember Building 7.org, and a New York group which includes 9/11 families. These groups call for a real investigation. David Ray […]
The Backlash of Moral Equivalency on Ukraine
With strong statements from the US State Department countering Kremlin propaganda like “President Putin’s Fiction: 10 False Claims About Ukraine” and “Setting the Record Straight on Ukraine” coming from the US Embassy in Kiev, it didn’t take long for some commentators to appear with a “plague on both their houses.” The Israeli newspaper Haaretz published an […]
Georgia Wants to Sell its Soviet Tanks and Helicopters
Georgia is considering getting rid of its Soviet and Russian weapons, primarily its T-55 and T‑72 tanks, and its Mi-8 helicopters. According to the Ministry of Defense there are “several dozen” of such machines. In the current conditions it doesn’t seem feasible to have them repaired in Russia or to get spare parts from Russia. […]
Russia is the Winner, Saudi Arabia and Israel the Losers
ITAR-TASS is the Russian state owned media giant, and El Murid is a pro-Kremlin analyst, and this editorial on the Iranian nuclear deal should be read as such. After several somewhat complex paragraphs about the breakdown of the technical aspects of the deal, Murid gets to his real point — America’s allies are weakened by […]