War

Russian nuclear-capable Iskander-M missile systems have been deployed in Syria in the last few days. It is the most advanced tactical missile system in the Russian arsenal and is the first time a nuclear-capable surface missile system has been deployed next to Israel since 2007. DEBKAfile reports: The Russian Iskander is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and has never been made available to any foreign army for operational use. No nuclear-capable surface missiles were deployed in any Arab country bordering on Israel since 2007 when Chinese DF-21 missiles were installed in Saudi Arabia.

Submitted by Simon Black via SovereignMan blog,

In his History of the Peloponnesian War, ancient Greek historian Thucydides told us the tale of a dominant regional power (Sparta) that felt threatened by the rise of a competing power (Athens).

Sparta felt so threatened, in fact, that all the moves they made to keep the Athenian rise in check eventually escalated the power struggle into an all out war.

Modern political scientists call this the Thucydides Trap.

There was much surprise in geopolitical circles several weeks ago when, completely out of the blue, Russian president Vladimir Putin announced he would begin withdrawing military forces from Syria at once, a move hailed by some as confirmation Russia had failed to achieve its goals in the civil war-ridden nation which serves as a hotbed of ISIS terrorist attacks around the globe, and by others as victory.

Following last Tuesday’s attacks on the Brussels airport and metro where nearly three dozen people were killed and hundreds more were wounded, the number one question on the minds of those who have followed the Belgium-based ISIS cell responsible for the Paris attacks was this: what did Salah Abdeslam know?

The ink on the Iran nuclear deal wasn’t even dry yet when Tehran tested a next generation, surface-to-surface ballistic missile with the range to hit archrival Israel.

The Emad, as the new weapon is called, expands upon Iran’s already impressive arsenal of missiles which the IRGC insists are paramount to securing the country against regional threats. The country’s missile program, Tehran says, is purely defensive in nature.