February, 2025

• 14 February

  Lebanon: President Aoun, PM Salam Form Government

  

  Twenty-six days after Nawaf Salam was assigned to form a Lebanese government, the decrees for its formation were announced on Saturday from the Presidential Palace. President Joseph Aoun accepted the resignation of Najib Mikati’s government. The Council of Ministers is scheduled to hold its first session at the Presidential Palace …

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• 14 February

  Combat losses and manpower challenges underscore the importance of ‘mass’ in Ukraine

  

  Ukrainian forces managed to blunt Russian territorial advances and inflict significant casualties and material losses in 2024, even with ammunition shortages and a deficit in infantry. However, Ukraine will need continued Western support and better manpower-management to avoid further battlefield setbacks. While 2024 was a difficult year for Ukraine on …

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• 14 February

  Post-Assad Syria Would Do Well To Retain Their Country’s Strategic Partnership With Russia

  

  Just because a course of action is considered to be the most rational doesn’t mean that it’ll be pursued. Syrian Defense Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra told the Washington Post last week that the interim government might allow Russia to keep its air and naval base in the country so long …

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• 14 February

  Dynamics Of Changing The Global Order: Return Of Trump, Greenland And Positioning On Geopolitical Chessboard – OpEd

  

  The dynamics of changing the global order The global order has undergone significant changes in recent decades, which have been intensified by specific factors. The emergence of new global powers such as China and India is consolidating their roles as new economic, technological and military superpowers. The competition between the …

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• 14 February

  Geopolitical Vision Of The Future: Serbia In The New Global Order – OpEd

  

  The world is experiencing tectonic shifts that will define the geopolitical landscape for decades to come. The emergence of a multipolar world, driven by the rise of China, Russia, and other BRICS members, poses a challenge that compels the United States to redefine its strategy for global leadership. President Donald …

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• 14 February

  The Rise Of Right-Wing Extremism: Islamism In Damascus – Analysis

  

  As early as 2011, during the initial days of the Arab Spring, I anticipated the rise of Islamist imperialism within the global rise of right-wing exclusionary movements. The events continued to follow that same catastrophic trajectory as the extreme right from Indonesia and the Indian Subcontinent to the Middle East …

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• 14 February

  Russian Military Moves To Revive Secret Soviet Submarine Base – Analysis

  

  As Russia’s war against Ukraine enters its third year, Ukraine’s growing offensive capabilities have forced the Russian military to work harder to protect its assets, including its battered Black Sea Fleet (BSF) (see EDM, November 8, 2022, March 11, 26, August 13 [1], [2], 2024). Media reports indicate that Russia …

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• 12 February

  Iran Update, February 11, 2025

  

  We do not report in detail on war crimes because these activities are well-covered in Western media and do not directly affect the military operations we are assessing and forecasting. We utterly condemn violations of the laws of armed conflict and the Geneva Conventions and crimes against humanity even though …

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• 12 February

  Unprecedented Defense Ministry Purge Sparks Concern in Russian Elite

  

  The anxiety among the broader elite caused by the Defense Ministry purge has been intensified by the fact that newly available rent flows have been divided up among different elite groups. The biggest source of tension within the Russian elites in 2024 was the purge of the Defense Ministry. Defense …

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• 12 February

  Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment, February 11, 2025

  

  Note: The data cut-off for this product was 1pm ET on February 11. ISW will cover subsequent reports in the February 12 Russian Offensive Campaign Assessment. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reiterated Ukraine’s commitment to good faith peace negotiations with Russia and the particular importance of US military assistance to Ukraine’s …

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