Russia
-
Conflicts - Tensions
North Korea-Russia military deals flagrantly violate U.N. sanctions, 11-nation group says
REUTERS North Korea enabled Russia to increase missile attacks against critical Ukrainian civilian infrastructure and supplied more than 20,000 containers of munitions, according to Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the United States and six other United Nations members. The group, called the Multilateral Sanctions Monitor Team, reported in late May 2025 that Moscow, in turn, helped North Korea improve…
Read More -
Northeast Asia
Sino-Russian bomber patrol reignites concerns over China’s nuclear commitments
Brandon J. Babin In late November 2024, China and Russia conducted their ninth combined strategic bomber patrol in the Indo-Pacific. The sorties differed from the others. It was China’s first use of the nuclear-capable H-6N bomber in a signaling event and represented the latest inconsistency in its nuclear commitments. While Beijing has been opaque about the H-6N’s nuclear mission, evidence…
Read More -
Global Commons
Shadow networks: Shell companies help PRC, Russia evade sanctions, export controls
U.S. Army 8th Theater Sustainment Command, National Security Law Team The People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Russia are using offshore shell companies to circumvent international sanctions. These opaque legal entities, set up in jurisdictions with loose regulations and lax enforcement, allow sanctioned individuals, companies and nations to continue accessing critical goods, technologies and financial systems, evading stringent sanctions imposed…
Read More -
Conflicts - Tensions
Undersea cable cutting attacks appear linked to the PRC
FORUM Staff As suspicious damage to undersea telecom cables and other infrastructure mounts worldwide, evidence is growing that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) may be involved in much of the alleged sabotage. Vessels tied to the PRC and Russia have been linked to most of the incidents through automated ship tracking that pinpoints their location at the time of…
Read More -
Conflicts - Tensions
‘Expendable’ North Korean troops ordered on futile missions in Russia’s illegal war
FORUM Staff North Korea’s ill-prepared troops, deployed to support Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine, are suffering significant casualties, including about 1,000 deaths and injuries during one week in late December 2024. The mass casualty estimates, provided by the United States National Security Advisor’s office and the U.S. Department of Defense, appear to confirm analysts’ predictions that North Korean troops would…
Read More -
Conflicts - Tensions
Japan sharpens measures against airspace violations following Russian, Chinese military incursions
Felix Kim Japan is well positioned to deter and counter violations of its territorial airspace, officials and analysts said following recent incursions by Russian and Chinese military aircraft. “Japan will continue to develop the capabilities to deploy aircraft and other resources to monitor and push out [Russian aircraft] from Japanese territory,” Stephen Nagy, an international relations professor at Japan’s International…
Read More -
Conflicts - Tensions
North Korean troop deployment to Russia violates U.N. resolutions
FORUM Staff The European Union imposed new sanctions on two top North Korean defense officials in mid-December 2024 for their roles in deploying troops to aid Russia’s unprovoked war in Ukraine. The EU targeted North Korean Defense Minister Ro Kwang Chol for his direct involvement in the military cooperation between the two regimes, including sending an estimated 11,000 troops to…
Read More -
Conflicts - Tensions
PRC’s links to Russia, battle inexperience cited for slowing arms sales
Voice of America The People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) drive to buttress its military modernization through increased international arms sales has slowed, according to a report from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, with experts citing Chinese-made weapons systems’ lack of battlefield testing as a detriment. The December 2024 report shows significant growth in total international arms sales driven by…
Read More -
Northeast Asia
Joint bomber exercise, arms buildup contradict Xi’s statements on nuclear weapons
FORUM Staff A joint nuclear-capable bomber drill by Beijing and Moscow near Japan in late November 2024 drew condemnation and called into question Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping’s past pronouncements against nuclear proliferation. The military exercise over the East China Sea and the Sea of Japan also tightened the links between the CCP and Russia, which repeatedly…
Read More -
Global Commons
Severed data cables linked to PRC-flagged cargo ship, European officials say
FORUM Staff European defense and government officials said a People’s Republic of China (PRC)-flagged vessel is a prime suspect after two undersea internet cables were severed in a span of hours in mid-November 2024. The cargo carrier Yi Peng 3 left a Russian port and sailed over both cables in the Baltic Sea about the time they were damaged. The…
Read More