Russia’s Shoigu in Iran to signal support, urge restraint against Israel A top Russian security official visited Tehran as Iran says it "welcomes trilateral cooperation between Iran, Russia and China." Iran
Erdogan meets 'dear friend' Putin as Russia, Turkey eye cooperation on Syria The two leaders reaffirmed their commitment to bilateral ties only days ahead of the NATO summit. Turkey
Analysis Can Turkey help Europe build effective air and missile defense system? With Turkey joining the German-led European Sky Shield Initiative, in the long run Ankara could use its burgeoning Hisar and Siper platforms to improve Europe’s air and missile defense. By Barin Kayaoglu In Ankara, reporting on geopolitics and national security
Russia sets up observation points in Syria near Golan Heights New Russian observation posts have popped up in southwest Syria amid increased tensions between pro-Iranian groups and Israel amid the Israel-Hamas war. Syria
Interview Syrian Kurdish commander tells Washington not to sell F-16s to Turkey With Mazlum Kobane SDF commander in chief
Analysis Israel-Russia ties unravel as Putin calls meeting over Dagestan mob incident By Rina Bassist In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs
Analysis Israel relayed to Russia 'dissatisfaction' over its Hamas position as rift widens By Rina Bassist In Paris, reporting on Israeli politics and European affairs
Analysis In Israel-Hamas war, Russia's leverage erodes, outflanked by US naval power By Anton Mardasov
Will Putin's 'ice cream diplomacy' with Erdogan help resolve Idlib? In Moscow, ice cream may have been the only thing Erdogan got for free from Putin. Syria
Young Syrians flee Daraa, Quneitra in droves Young people have been taking flight from Daraa and Quneitra in bids to find decent jobs and to avoid having to serve in the Syrian army. Lebanon
Turkey questions why Russia didn't prevent Idlib attack The Syrian airstrike this week against a Turkish military convoy in Idlib has prompted speculation that Russia and Syria are cooperating at Turkey's expense. Yemen
Turkey vexed with Russia after Syria strikes convoy Following Syrian airstrikes on a Turkish convoy, Russia appears to be keeping calm and staying the course, but developments on the ground are spinning quickly. Syria
What's next for Russia in Idlib? Following the violation of the cease-fire in Idlib, Russia faces the need to manage the breakout of new hostilities and fix the deal with Turkey. Syria
Astana talks show Russia eager to keep plugging away at Idlib The new round of Syria talks in Kazakhstan produced a cease-fire in Idlib and the promise for a constitutional committee due to be announced in September, but will all of this ultimately happen? Syria
Special operations forces reflect on lessons of terror fight The Pentagon’s command for elite special operations forces is assessing how repeated deployments to the Middle East during the war on terror have impacted the forces' core values. Iraq
Is Russia behind Syria's security apparatus reform? The latest changes at the top levels of Syria's military and intelligence structures point to Russian influence, but was it Bashar al-Assad's game plan all along? Syria
Russia, Turkey still defending own interests in Syria Fighting goes on in Idlib and Hama provinces between opposition forces and the Syrian regime, and recently Turkey and Russia seem more involved in the confrontations. Syria
Russian diplomats sweep through Lebanon, Iraq, Syria Russia's Syria envoy Alexander Lavrentiev and others recently paid important visits to the Middle East to present Russia’s refugee plan and discuss the latest regional developments. Iraq
How Russia plans to take part in building Syria's IT sector As Syria seeks to restore some of its damaged IT facilites and build "an information society" in the country, Russian companies consider opportunities to chip in. Syria
Intel: How Russia is trying to calm Turkey-Syria tensions Russia announced today that it had helped negotiate a cease-fire in rebel-controlled Idlib province this week as rising tensions between Turkey and Syria threaten to escalate into open conflict. Syria