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Showing posts from January 1, 2016

Tel Aviv Shooting Leaves 2 Dead and 7 Wounded - NYTimes.com

Tel Aviv Shooting Leaves 2 Dead and 7 Wounded - NYTimes.com Tel Aviv attack: Footage emerges of gunman - BBC News Two shot dead in Tel Aviv, Israeli Arab named as fugitive suspect | Reuters Syrian, Iraqi militants said to have planned New Year attack in Munich | Reuters Erdogan says Hitler's Germany exemplifies effective presidential system | Reuters Two Turkish Police Officers Killed in Kurdish Southeast Munich stations evacuated over 'IS attack threat' - BBC News ISIS Behind Munich Terror Threat That Closed Train Stations, Officials Say - ABC News New Year's Eve fire burns for hours at Dubai luxury hotel | Fox News Man Attacks Soldiers Guarding French Mosque With His Car - ABC News 15 Killed in Early Hours of New Year in El Salvador I want to be the Hitler of Turkey, says Erdogan | The Times 2016: What lies ahead for the world - CNN.com Imprisoned Saudi blogger's health deteriorating, wife says | Reuters The media moguls to watch in Europe in 2016 ...

Restoring The Trust: Russification Of The West or Westernization Of Russia? - "[Mr. Putin] is on the lookout for levers to weaken Europe's ties with the US, our correspondent says, in the hope of one day turning Russia into Europe's main strategic partner." - Russia security paper designates Nato as threat - BBC News

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M.N.: There is nothing particularly new in those news about the " Russian National Security Strategy " signed by Mr. Putin on the last day of 2015. It is the reiteration of the previous documents, most notably the military doctrine of 2014 and most importantly, it is the reiteration of contemporary thinking of Russian leadership and security establishment about Russia's place in the world and the threats, real and imaginary, current and potential, that, in their minds, Russia is facing.  How much of this is a sober assessment and how much is a political paranoia?  The exact ratio is hard to determine, but it definitely is a mix.  It might be useful to separate the unhealthy and excessive suspicions, which is a burdening baggage from the times past and long gone (we all might have certain nostalgic troubles parting with our old baggage) from reality.  Basically, to put it in plain language, this "strategy" comes down to:  "We do not trust you. You are ...