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GOP – Quo Vadis?

Rocky Road sign / photo: Sara Kuepfer

Any successful political movement or party requires enlightened leadership. And especially after suffering political defeat, a self-critical evaluation of the party’s mistakes is needed to get the party back on its feet – and on a solid ideological footing.

I am not saying that the GOP lacks spokesmen. The diatribes of the Rush Limbaughs and the Sarah Palins are omnipresent. But I can’t see much leadership, not to mention an “enlightened” one.

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The ISN Quiz: Rethinking Environmental (In)Security

Take note of your environment as you’re taking the latest ISN Quiz, featuring this week’s theme: Rethinking Environmental (In)Security.

[QUIZZIN 12]

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Russian and Eurasian Security Network

Russian and Eurasian Security Network
Russian and Eurasian Security Network

We are happy to announce that the Russian and Eurasian Security Network (RES) has launched a Facebook fan page.

The RES is a global initiative of leading academic institutes, think-tanks, NGOs and media organizations. It offers a framework for studying security-related developments in Russia and the states of the Eurasian region. The RES hosts two original content publications which can be subscribed to via newsletter; the Russian Analytical Digest (RAD) and the Caucasus Analytical Digest (CAD).

The RES Facebook fan page is a place to discuss our publications and share your thoughts on developments in Russia and Eurasia. We aim to encourage greater dialog among analysts, policymakers and academics interested in the Russian and Eurasian region and invite you to join the discussion!

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New ISN Partner: Petrospot Limited

Petrospot - Transport, Energy & Maritime Intelligence

Petrospot Limited, a publishing, training and events organization focused on the maritime, energy and transport industries, has joined the International Relations and Security Network (ISN) as a partner.

Based in Oxfordshire, England, Petrospot was established in May 2003 by Llewellyn Bankes-Hughes (Managing Director). He is supported by Ian Taylor (Director – Publishing), Luci Llewellyn-Jones (Director – Events), Lesley Bankes-Hughes (Company Secretary – Associate Editor), Luke Hallam Evans (Sales Manager) and Alison Jane Cutler (Design & Marketing Manager).

Petrospot publishes two leading international magazines, Bunkerspot and Cargo Security International. Each is fully supported by 24/7 electronic news services. The company also organizes international conferences, conducts training courses and seminars and publishes books on marine fuels.

Welcome on board, Petrospot!

China’s Nuke Storage Site Revealed

Chinese soldiers in Beijing / Photo: Luther Bailey, flickr
When it comes to the stockpiles of the world’s nuclear-armed states, China is among the most secretive of them all. This is what made the 12 March publication of a report on China’s Nuclear Warhead Storage and Handling System by Mark Stokes, executive director of the Washington-based Project 2049 Institute, an Asia-focused think-tank – all the more remarkable. Through “authoritative sources, correlation of reliable data, and analysis,” Stokes identifies not only where China keeps its nuclear weapons, but how (and how well) they are protected from accident and attack.

Stokes writes that the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Military Commission “maintains strict control over China’s operational nuclear warheads through a centralized storage and handling system managed by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Second Artillery.” In peacetime, warheads are managed through a system that is “separate and distinct” from PLA Second Artillery missile bases as well as apart from China’s system for keeping tabs on its civilian-use fissile materials. In addition, he says, the Second Artillery appears to control and manage nuclear warheads that could be used by the PLA’s air force and navy.