• Turkey concludes purchase agreement for S-400 missile systems from Russia

    Turkey has signed an agreement with Russia on the purchase of Russian S-400 anti-aircraft defense systems. According to the Turkish press, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the country has already made an advance payment under the agreement.

    The total amount of the purchase is estimated at $2.5 billion, Radjo Liberty reports. Russia confirmed that the contract was signed and "is getting ready for implementation."

    The NATO alliance, where Turkey is a member, reported that they …

  • US strategic bombers arrive in Czech Republic

    Two American strategic bombers, a B-52 and a B-1B, landed at the Mošnov airport in Ostrava, in the north-east of the Czech Republic. These powerful military aircraft will take part in the NATO Days, Radio Svoboda reports.

    “These planes take part in public activities extremely rarely, and so this is a unique occasion, when we can see them in this way,” observed Zbinek Pavlacic, one of the event organizers.

    The B-52 and B-1B already participated in the Ample Strike drills alongside the Czech …

  • Large-scale military exercises begin in Sweden

    Aurora 2017, the largest military exercise in the last 20 years, will be conducted in Sweden from September 11 to September 29, as stated in the Swedish Armed Forces press release.

    Swedish authorities said it is the largest one in recent decades and that it is unique for the country as the exercise will be held at sea, on land and in the air.

    "Aurora 2017 is a first for the Armed Forces and the largest national exercise in more than 20 years," the press release says. The main localities for …

  • Syrian Foreign Ministry urges US to leave country; otherwise they will be considered a hostile force

    Deputy Foreign Minister of Syria Faisal Mekdad stated in an interview with the TV Station Al-Mayadeen on Sunday that the US military presence in Syria is "illegal and unacceptable," since it was not approved by the government of the Arab Republic. According to Mekdad, the US "should withdraw its military; otherwise the Syrian army will consider them as a hostile force."

    "The actions of the United States and the coalition led by it have no justification, for they destroy Syria, killing …

  • Latvia begins senior NATO officer staff exercises

    On Sunday, September 10, the Steadfast Pyramid 2017 and Steadfast Pinnacle 2017 exercises for the senior and high ranking NATO staff began at the National Defense Academy of Latvia in Riga. The exercises involve more than 40 officers from alliance member states and partner states – Finland and Sweden, the internet portal tv.net reports.

    The goal of the exercises is to improve the commanders’ and high-ranking officers’ ability to plan and lead joint operations.

    Steadfast Pyramid 2017 will be …