21st Century Security

Ariel Cohen: Islamic Terrorism in Russia (video)

May 9, 2013

Dr. Cohen’s speech at the National Security Group lunch at the Center for Security Policy.Center for Security Policy

May 9, 2013

Watch

Human Rights Watch Decries Russia Opposition Crackdown

May 8, 2013

Human Rights Watch (HRW) recently released a scathing new report focused on the crackdown on Russia’s civil society. Since December 2011, the Kremlin has committed to squashing nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that promote democracy and are alleged conduits of Western influence, HRW says.

By Ariel Cohen and Benjamin Tigay

May 8, 2013

Continued

Obama’s Best Friend? The Alarming Evolution of US-Turkish Relations

May 1, 2013

Shifts in Turkey’s domestic political orientation have led to a change in Ankara’s perceptions of its foreign policy roles and capabilities. The US has misunderstood and largely ignored this shift, failing to understand the implications of Turkey’s transformation under the AKP. A strong and comprehensive policy towards Turkey is long overdue.

By Ariel Cohen

May 1, 2013

Continued

North Caucasus: Islamist Threat Comes from a History of Violence

April 26, 2013

Boston Marathon bombers have brought greater attention to Russia’s volatile North Caucasus, their ancestral home. As painful their heinous acts are, however, the bombers’ actions are just a footnote to the history of insurgency and connections to global Islamist networks in the North Caucasus.

By Ariel Cohen

April 26, 2013

Continued

Boston bombing a warning to governments, police and security services worldwide

April 21, 2013

THE Boston Marathon attack by two young Chechen men demonstrates the global nature and deep historic roots of contemporary Islamist terrorism.It also indicates that major sports competitions, concerts and other events are targets for terrorists and sends the warning to the organisers of the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics in Russia: “You are next”.

By Ariel Cohen

April 21, 2013

Continued

The Kremlin's World

April 5, 2013

When the Russian Foreign Ministry released its updated Foreign Policy Concept in February, codifying Russia’s global strategies, Washington yawned. Yet this document reveals much about the emerging “Putin Doctrine.” It further separates Russia from Western Europe and is especially critical of the United States.

By Ariel Cohen

April 5, 2013

Continued

How Not to Negotiate with Russia: The Missile Defense Fiasco

April 1, 2013

Russia’s objections to U.S. missile defense development and deployment have been on the agenda of consecutive American Administrations starting with Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. For President Obama, it became a high priority as Moscow turned missile defense disagreement into a principal bone of contention.

By Ariel Cohen

April 1, 2013

Continued

Moscow's Cyprus Defeat

March 27, 2013

Cyprus has agreed on a bailout with its international creditors—but the effects will have geopolitical and economic implications for Russia-EU relations.

By Ariel Cohen

March 27, 2013

Continued

Ariel Cohen: If Only U.S. Policy Was More Energy-Friendly

March 26, 2013

What does growing U.S. oil production mean for energy markets and geopolitics?

By Ariel Cohen

March 26, 2013

Continued

The Russia-China Axis Grows

March 14, 2013

China’s new president Xi Jinping will make his first official foreign visit later this month. He will visit Russia, in a trip Chinese sources say “will improve relations and cement strategic partnership.”

By Ariel Cohen

March 14, 2013

Continued

London Mayor Decries Posthumous Trial of Russian Whistleblower

March 13, 2013

London mayor Boris Johnson published an op-ed Monday in which he decried the posthumous trial of whistleblower Sergei Magnitsky.Johnson called Magnitsky “a martyr trampled by a corrupt system” and called on the United Kingdom and the European Union to pass a Magnitsky Act—which levies financial sanctions and visa restrictions on the Russian officials involved in Magnitsky’s death—of its own.

By Ariel Cohen

March 13, 2013

Continued

Iran Threatens U.S. Interests in the South Caucasus

December 5, 2012

Testimony before the Subcommittee on Europe and Eurasia, Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives

By Ariel Cohen December 5, 2012

Continued

Why Russia Roots for Obama

November 5, 2012

As election eve in the United States approaches, Moscow is hoping for a return of the incumbent.During a recent meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club, a forum for exchanging views on Russia, at least three senior Russian officials announced that the U.S. president’s reelection would be good for Russia. This is hardly surprising. Russians respect and get along with power.

By Ariel Cohen

The National Interest

November 5, 2012

Continued

50 Years Later: The Soviets’ Reckless Overreach in the Cuban Missile Crisis

October 18, 2012

On October 16–28, the world is marking the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, a standoff between the United States and the former Soviet Union that nearly ended in a nuclear war between the two superpowers.

The confrontation of the Cold War still affects the relationship between the U.S. and Russia to this day and is a cautionary tale in a world where nuclear proliferation is rampant.

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation, October 18, 2012

Continued

Russian Technology Espionage Exposed

October 5, 2012

On October 3, the FBI reported [1] it had charged 11 people with running a military technology procurement network based in the United States and Russia that was allegedly illegally procuring [2] and exporting high-tech microelectronics to the Russian military and intelligence services. Alexander Fishenko, the owner of the Houston-based Arc Electronics Inc., was charged with operating as an unregistered foreign agent.

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation, October 5, 2012

Continued

The Endangered Mongolian Mineral Boom

September 27, 2012

The Tavan Tolgoi coal mine in southern Mongolia.Eight hundred years after Genghis Khan, Mongolia is back in the news. Nicknamed “Mine-golia,” it is enjoying the largest energy and raw-materials boom [3] on the planet. Today, Mongolia boasts the world’s third-largest copper mine [4], as well as one of the largest coal mines.In the first quarter of 2012, Mongolia’s economy grew at an average annual rate of 16.7 percent.

By Ariel Cohen

The National Interest

September 27, 2012

Continued

News Flash for the Pentagon: U.S.–Russian “Reset” Failed

September 20, 2012

On Wednesday, Under Secretary of Defense Jim Miller argued that the Obama Administration’s “reset” policy with Russia had succeeded.

According to Miller, rapproachment with Russia has enabled the U.S. to diversify supply routes into Afghanistan and implement tough sanctions against Iran.

Miller’s claim does not pass the reality test on several levels.

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation, September 20, 2012

Continued

Russia to Create “Son of Satan” Missile

September 13, 2012

Last week, General Sergei Karakayev, Commander of the Strategic Rocket Forces, announced [2] plans for a new heavy intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) to go into production as soon as 2018. He emphasized that the new missile would be capable of penetrating the NATO missile shield Russia dislikes so much.

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation

September 13, 2012

Continued

Russia's Pivot to Asia?

September 11, 2012

Russia hosted the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum this past weekend in its Pacific port of Vladivostok. It was a clear signal that Moscow’s interest in Asia is rising as the traditional market for its energy and raw materials—the euro zone—wallows in crisis and stagnation. And After America’s much-ballyhooed “pivot to Asia,” it is now Russia’s turn.

By Ariel Cohen

The National Interest, September 11, 2012

Continued

Russia and the World Trade Organization: Congress Should Not Sacrifice Human Rights

July 27, 2012

Yesterday, the House Ways and Means Committee approved H.R. 6156, the Russia and Moldova Jackson-Vanik Repeal Act of 2012, by voice vote with only one “nay.” This is a step in the right direction, given that Russia will join the World Trade Organization (WTO) on August 22.The 1974 Jackson–Vanik amendment denies Russia permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status...

By Ariel Cohen, Michaela Bendikova, and Bryan Riley

July 27, 2012

American Leadership, The Heritage Foundation

Continued

Challenging America: How Russia, China, and Other Countries Use Public Diplomacy to Compete with the U.S.

June 21, 2012

Competing aggressively with the United States for the “hearts and minds” of people around the world, many state and non-state actors are funneling significant resources into their public diplomacy strategies. The Chinese government announced in 2009 that it would spend almost $7 billion on a “global media drive” to improve its image. The Russian government allocated $1.4 billion for international propaganda in 2010.

The Heritage Foundation, June 21, 2012

Continued

Obama-Putin Meeting Brings Chill to Mexico

June 20, 2012

President Barack Obama and Russian president Vladimir Putin met at the G-20 summit in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. The meeting’s results disappointed realists and international interventionists alike.

The two leaders failed to reach agreements on core geopolitical issues. But the body language said it all: after the two hour meeting the two barely looked at each other, and Reuters reported their demeanor as “cool and detached.”

By Ariel Cohen

The National Interest  

June 20, 2012

Continued

Dialogue of the Deaf: Obama and Putin at the G-20 Meeting

June 18, 2012

Today, President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting [1] at the G-20 summit in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. This meeting is likely will be tense, as the two leaders have fundamentally different agendas regarding some of the most pressing international problems.

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation, June 18, 2012

Continued

Russia, PNTR, and Human Rights

June 13, 2012

Progress on the ability of U.S. firms to take advantage of new business opportunities when Russia joins the World Trade Organization (WTO) took a step forward yesterday when Senate leaders acknowledged that legislation to promote human rights will be a condition needed for permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) to move forward, too.

By Ariel Cohen and Bryan Riley

The Heritage Foundation, June 13, 2012

Continued

The Magnitsky Act: The Moment of Truth

June 5, 2012

This Thursday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee will put the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of Law Accountability Act up for a vote. The bill seeks “to impose sanctions on persons responsible for the detention, abuse, or death of Sergei Magnitsky, and for other gross violations of human rights in the Russian Federation, and for other purposes.”

By Ariel Cohen

The Heritage Foundation

June 5, 2012

Continued