Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- September 9, 2015

Vladimir Putin (C) and Sergei Shoigu (L) watch military drills in July 2013© ITAR-TASS/Alexei Nikolsky

NPR: In Russia, A 'Show Of Force' As The Military Tries To Modernize

Russia has been displaying its military might lately, with war games and weapons shows. Even though his country is the midst of a recession, President Vladimir Putin is pushing ahead with a costly plan to modernize the military.

Top U.S. and NATO officials have identified Russia's war-making potential as a greater threat than Islamist terrorism, but is the hype justified?

There's a quote that's often attributed to Winston Churchill: "Russia is never as strong as you fear or as weak as you hope."

Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- September 9, 2015

NATO concerned over possible Russian military buildup in Syria -- Deutsche Welle

Russian military buildup in Syria suggests Putin toying with troop deployment to fight the Islamic State -- AP

Russia's Airborne Units Put On Full Alert Amid NATO Tensions, Combat Readiness Inspections -- IBTimes

Russia Tests New Fighter Bombers in Crimea -- Newsweek

Russia likely to give military assistance to Afghanistan: Interfax -- Reuters

Russian Military Sales To Brazil: Pantsir-S1 Surface To Air Missile System Deal Being Negotiated -- IBTimes

Ukraine still faces threat of Russian military offensive: Poroshenko -- Reuters

Not Talking to You Anymore: Moldova Ends All Military Relations With Russia -- Sputnik

Russia demands answers from Sofia, Athens as Syria flights blocked -- AFP

Israel Sells Drones To Russia To Spy On Ukraine Border -- IBTimes

The Real Reason China Is Cutting 300,000 Troops -- Shannon Tiezzi, The Diplomat

What's going on with China's military orders? -- Noah Feldman, Bloomberg

How China is building warships as India sleeps -- Ravi Rikhye, Daily O

UK Commits To 2 Carriers, Fully Crewed; F-35B Numbers TBD -- Breaking Defense

Pakistan Surprises Many With First Use of Armed Drone -- Defense News

F-22 Raptors Join A-10 Warthogs in Estonia -- DoD Buzz

The US is upping its intelligence game in the Arctic -- Business Insider

GOP chairman warns Obama against 'hasty' Afghan withdrawal -- The Hill

Lockheed Martin Protests JLTV Contract Award to OshKosh -- Defense News

Pentagon food court computers hacked, exposing employees' bank information -- Washington Examiner

NSA Chief Says Cyberattack at Pentagon Was Sophisticated, Persistent -- WSJ

Poll: Washington Insiders Expect Full-Year CR -- Defense News

Marine Corps’ women-in-combat experiment gets mixed results -- Washington Post

How the Army is Unlocking Soldier Suicide -- Government Executive

Former CIA officials release book defending agency interrogations -- Washington Post

Pentagon watchdog investigating why the Army didn’t award Medal of Honor to Green Beret -- Washington Post

Here's how military combat training is evolving -- Jeffrey Forker, SOFREP

How the UN Can Shield Civilians From War -- Bloomberg editorial