The Soviet Union lasted a mere sixty-nine years (the Spitfire has been flying longer), but in that time produced some of the largest, fastest, toughest and most agile aircraft. Even now, 25 years after its collapse, almost all Russian and Ukrainian aircraft have their roots in the communist super state. Favoring clever robust design over…
Category: Russian Corner
War Machines: The Terminator-3 Is Russia’s Answer to Hard Lessons in Chechnya
Bristling with weapons, these quasi-tanks are intended to take on unconventional foes in rough terrain While the T-14 main battle tank is the most prominent member of the Armata family, the vehicle series incorporates a host of new fighting machines. Among those is a platform ominously named the Terminator-3, which is a tank support fighting…
Espionage Files: Russian Banker Sentenced to 2 1/2 Years for Spying
NEW YORK (AP) — A Russian banker who pleaded guilty to conspiracy in what the government portrayed as a Cold War-style spy ring was sentenced Wednesday to 2½ years in a U.S. prison. Evgeny Buryakov, 41, also was fined $10,000 by U.S. District Judge Richard M. Berman, who said the sentence reflects the seriousness of…
Espionage Files: Portuguese Spy Caught Passing ‘NATO Secrets’ To Russian Handler In Rome
The Kremlin’s espionage offensive in Europe came to the surface on Tuesday after a Portuguese spy was arrested in Rome for allegedly passing NATO secrets to a Russian intelligence officer. The supposed double agent, identified by the local media as Frederico Carvalhão, is a member of the Potugal’s SIS intelligence service, the country’s equivalent of MI5, responsible for…
Cold War Files: The Ghost of Soviet Past
CRAWLING THROUGH THE DECAYED NUCLEAR MISSILE BASES OF THE USSR Editor’s note: In December 2015, two Army intelligence officers set out on a trip to explore the mysterious remnants of the Soviet Union in the Baltic States. In the first of this two part series, they showed War on the Rocks readers what they saw…
Military News: China and Russia Field “Anti-Stealth” Drones
Both China and Russia appear to be building unmanned aerial vehicles designed to negate America’s advantages in stealth aircraft. Earlier this year, photos first emerged of a new High Altitude, Long Endurance (HALE) UAV termed the Divine Eagle that foreign observers believe is designed to detect and eliminate stealth enemy aircraft far from the Chinese…
Future Warfare: Three Articles You Need to Read on Russia and China
I have felt a strong need as of late to stay abreast of all developments regarding Russia and China. I would urge all my readers to not be distracted by all the Political theater and “filler” the state run media seems intent on running on continuous loop as of late. It is mindless garbage fit…
Hair Triggers The World Over…
I was taught a long time ago that when the DISTRACTIONS in your Environment are the LOUDEST, that is the time you need to be the MOST AWARE. Put Aside the REALITY TV SHOW THAT IS AMERICAN POLITICS FOR A SECOND AND CONSIDER: How many times can Three Super Powers REPEATEDLY “BRUSH” UP AGAINST ONE…
Espionage Files: The Day We Discovered Our Parents Were Russian Spies
For years Donald Heathfield, Tracey Foley and their two children lived the American dream. Then an FBI raid revealed the truth: they were agents of Putin’s Russia. Their sons tell their story. Tim Foley turned 20 on 27 June 2010. To celebrate, his parents took him and his younger brother Alex out for lunch at…
Modern Crime: “PutinFellas”
Putin’s Kleptocracy and the Russian Nationalized Mafia As deputy mayor of St. Petersburg in the 1990s, Vladimir Putin spent a lot of time with gangsters. He collaborated with the infamous Tambov and Malyshev organized crime groups to gain control of St. Petersburg’s gambling industry. He used his office to help launder mafia money and to…