The EU’s Mission to Iraq and the Country’s Persistent Instability

On 7 September 2022, the Iraqi supreme court ruled that the national parliament could not be dissolved if not by itself. In doing so, it rejected a key demand made by Moqtada al-Sadr, a 48-years-old Shiite cleric followed by millions all around the country, who had vehemently asked for early elections. Currently, he leads the largest political group inside the Iraqi parliament, controlling as many as 73 of the chamber’s 329 seats. The top court’s decision followed a period of turmoil and social unrest that had started in late August, when al-Sadr publicly announced that he was seriously considering withdrawing from politics. Since then, its supporters have engaged in numerous armed clashes with both security forces and rival militias, throwing the entire country into disarray. How can it be that Iraq’s main political force advocates for a return to the polls, instead of taking part in the nation’s government? The reason should be sought in the fierce rivalry that opposes different Iraqis Shiite parties and which is becoming increasingly violent.

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What does International Law Say About Military Use of Outer Space, Legal Analysis of the McGill Manual

Since 2009, the European Defence Agency (EDA) has promoted and supervised a series of initiatives to improve interoperability between the Member States in joint operations involving the employment of helicopters. The Helicopter Exercise Programme (HEP) has so far produced sixteen joint exercises, which have progressively gained wider participation, with eight countries (France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Finland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Portugal) providing their infrastructures for the operations.

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Reinforcing European Military Cooperation: EDA’s Helicopter Initiatives

Since 2009, the European Defence Agency (EDA) has promoted and supervised a series of initiatives to improve interoperability between the Member States in joint operations involving the employment of helicopters. The Helicopter Exercise Programme (HEP) has so far produced sixteen joint exercises, which have progressively gained wider participation, with eight countries (France, Spain, Italy, Belgium, Finland, Hungary, Czech Republic, and Portugal) providing their infrastructures for the operations.

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The Road to Atlantic: China’s naval projection

In the past decades, China has profoundly invested in the modernization of China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) moving China to the first position as the world’s largest maritime force with its size expected to grow in the future (U.S. Department of Defense 2021). Whereas China’s initial goal is to strengthen its Navy to match or surpass the United States global influence or power in the Indo-Pacific region, it is also to project its forces to protect China’s national interests abroad and gain a more important place in the international system. In doing so, China is using a combination of economic, political, and military tools, under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), to evade the United States’ containment strategy and secure its strategic position.

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Training a New Generation of Soldiers: the Use of Simulation Systems in the Swedish Armed Forces

Since armies existed, countries faced the need to train them. In fact, the level of training and the modernisation of the equipment, tactics, morale, and other factors less reliant on human capital determine an army’s strength. This article aims at underlying how training techniques for the military are currently undergoing the biggest leap forward they have witnessed since the adoption of firearms. Here the author will take advantage of this topic to present his first-hand experience with modern-day military training techniques involving simulators.

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