July, 2021

• 8 July

  Russian Media Unpacks New National Security Strategy

  

  On July 2, 2021, Vladimir Putin approved Russia’s updated national security strategy, the previous version was authored in 2015. The national security strategy gives the appearance of a laundry list. It runs the gamut from military concerns to building internal consensus and defending Russia from pernicious Western ideas. The doctrine …

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• 8 July

  Russian Expert Plotnikov: Russia No Longer Is The Only Player In The Trans Caucasus, Turkey’s Influence Is Comparable

  

  Dmitry Plotnikov, an expert on “soft power” and the post-Soviet space authored an analysis titled “Turkey Is Building a New Ottoman Empire”, where he analyzed the growing ties between Ankara and Baku and concluded that Russia has lost its formerly dominant position in Azerbaijan. This is most evident in military …

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• 8 July

  Turkey Circumvents US Sanctions by Building Its Own Vertical Launching System

  When the American Lockheed Martin Corporation was unable to complete the job it had promised Ankara – building a vertical missile launching system for the Turkish Navy – because of American sanctions imposed in response to Turkey’s purchase of Russia’s S-400 anti-missile defensive system, Ankara responded with the determination to …

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• 8 July

  Israel’s New President to Take Office

  Isaac Herzog, the incumbent Jewish Agency chairman, former Labor party leader, and son of Israel’s sixth president, Chaim Herzog, becomes Israel’s 11th president in a Wednesday afternoon ceremony in Jerusalem. He replaces Reuven (Ruby) Rivlin. Although the presidency is a largely ceremonial position within Israel’s parliamentary democracy, the post is …

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• 8 July

  Saudi Prince Khalid Meets US Officials on the Down-Low

  Saudi Arabia’s deputy defense minister, Prince Khalid bin Salman, the son of King Salman and brother of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is on a visit to Washington that, while not a secret, was not publicly disclosed in advance. Today’s meetings are at the State Department, while on Tuesday he …

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• 8 July

  Iran Producing Enriched Uranium Metal Needed for Bomb

  The International Atomic Energy Agency disclosed on Tuesday that Iran had begun to produce uranium metal enriched to 20% purity, a move that the United States and European powers immediately condemned. Uranium metal can be used to make the core of a nuclear bomb. Britain, France and Germany in a …

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• 8 July

  Report: Washington relaunches plan of surveillance on Libya-Tunisia border

  The US justice department’s counterterrorism division has revived its plan to acquire balloons to keep the border between Libya and Tunisia under surveillance, saying that following the failure of Lockheed Martin and TCOM, two other US firms are still in the running, according to the French website, Africa Intelligence. The …

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• 8 July

  Russia skips U.N. talks on Syria cross-border aid access -diplomats

  Russia skipped U.N. Security Council negotiations on Tuesday on whether to extend approval for cross-border aid access into Syria, diplomats said, as China pushed for “solutions” to its concerns about unilateral sanctions and aid transparency. The council mandate for the long-running U.N. operation delivering aid into northern Syria from Turkey …

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• 8 July

  Egypt ends impounding of ship that got stuck in Suez Canal

  An Egyptian court on Tuesday lifted a three-month long judicial seizure of a hulking shipping vessel that had blocked the Suez Canal for nearly a week earlier this year, paving the way for it to leave Egypt. Following the decision by the court in the city of Ismailia, the Ever …

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• 8 July

  Qatar to provide food aid for Lebanese soldiers amid economic crisis

  Qatar will provide the Lebanese armed forces with 70 tonnes of food a month, the Qatari state news agency QNA reported, as Lebanon seeks assistance amid its worst economic and political crisis since a 1975-1990 civil war. Lebanon’s army chief Joseph Aoun had appealed to world powers at meeting in …

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