In the event of conflict in the Taiwan Strait, if the United States were to send an aircraft carrier to the scene, it would likely remain in an area 800-1,000 kilometers from the spot of engagement. This is what happened in 1999 when China sent a series of air sorties over the island and the [...]

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DAMASCUS (Reuters) - An Israeli raid on Syria has all but finished off chances for resuming peace talks between the two foes, Syrian officials said on Monday.
In the first clear reaction to the Sept 6. Israeli air strike, officials told Reuters Syria was wary of retaliating against Israel given the military superiority of the Jewish [...]

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Russian state-owned giant Gazprom said last Thursday that it will begin drilling this year in two blocks off the coast of Venezuela, whose vice president is in Moscow this week to promote expanded economic cooperation between the two countries.
“The firm Zarubezhneftegaz, an affiliate of Gazprom, will begin drilling in the fourth quarter of this year,” [...]

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It is true that China’s conventional diesel submarines are vastly cheaper and easier to build than nuclear ones. Last year the United States built a single new submarine and it was, like all U.S. Navy subs, a nuclear-powered one. China, by contrast, is years, perhaps still even decades behind U.S. submarine nuclear technology, especially in [...]

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More than four decades after quitting NATO’s military wing, France may be considering rejoining. Critics say the move is largely symbolic, since Paris is already an active member in the transatlantic alliance. But Lisa Bryant reports from Paris the move would reflect a larger foreign policy shift underway under French President Nicolas Sarkozy. [...]

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‘Chances of war with Syria still high’
Jerusalem Post, Israel - 13 hours ago
“The spirit of Israel must be prepared at every moment as if the next war is around the corner.” Barak’s remarks came hours after Britain’s Sunday Times …
Reuters Politics Summary Washington Post
What Israel Really Gained by Bombing Syria New Republic (subscription)
NKorea must be open about [...]

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Sept. 24 (Bloomberg) — In the past year, Russian President Vladimir Putin has morphed from a noisy irritant to the West who was reaching the end of his two-term limit to a swaggering antagonist who isn’t going away.
At least that’s the view of senior Bush administration officials, who increasingly see Russia as a rising [...]

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