Valdai Club

The sudden disruption in global trade brought on by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has exposed a stark reality of contemporary global commons—the high seas no longer serve as secure superhighways linking international centres of economic activity. Those seas are now perceived with greater caution as the risks and uncertainty inherent to the maritime space increasingly come into focus for a number of powers.

A sharp aggravation of the socio-economic situation in the Middle East, new waves of refugees, and the outbreak of hostilities could affect Russia’s interests in Syria and create favourable conditions for international terrorism and Islamist groups in the region. In any case, it is difficult to predict the consequences for Iran, Turkey and Israel, which to varying degrees are important partners for Russia, Prokhor Tebin writes.

The National Security Strategy (NSS) is a fundamental document of the US grand strategy. It outlines the current US administration’s strategic vision of national interests, challenges and threats, the goals of state policy in the world and methods and instrumentsarticle for achieving them.

The new Naval Doctrine is strikingly different from the 2015 edition. The world described in it seems much more disturbing and dangerous; its potential for conflict has increased significantly, Valdai Club expert Prokhor Tebin writes.

The recent statement of NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on the European Union’s dependence on NATO for defense and security is based on real facts. The United States pays 72 percent of NATO’s total military expenses, while the United States, Canada and ‘Brexiting’ UK combined pay 80 percent.

The serious decline in Russia’s relations with the West has breathed a new life into NATO, which returned to its traditional role, the containment of Russia.