1-29 February | Visually confirmed Regime‘s armor losses

22 October 2019 the memorandum of understanding signed between Turkey and Russia in Sochi: Promises Given by Russia and the Facts

Central Figures shaping American Syria Policy Donald J. Trump The 45th President of the United States Trump was born in Queens, NYC in 1946. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is in charge of his family’s real-estate business in 1971. Entering, the 2016 presidential race as a Republican, he defeated 16 other candidates. He is known to be a populist, a protectionist, and a nationalist. He entered history as the oldest first term US President and yet the only one without any prior military or government service.[1] Michael R. Pence The 48th and current Vice President of the United States Pence was born in Indiana in 1959. Vice President Pence received his bachelor’s degree in history from Hanover College in 1981. Afterwards he continued with his education at Indiana University School of Law. After the graduation he practiced law and led the Indiana Policy Review Foundation. In 2000, at the age of 40, he entered the United States House of Representatives. He was elected by the people of East-Central Indiana 6 times to represent them in the US Congress. While in Congress, he served as Chairman of the House Republican Study Committee and House Republican Conference Chairman. In 2013, Pence left the Capitol Hill to become the 50th governor of Indiana. In July 2016, now President Trump selected Pence as his running mate. As a result, President Trump and Vice President Pence entered office on January 20, 2017.[2] Robert C. O’Brien Trump’s National Security Advisor (NSA) Robert Charles O’Brien Jr. is a lawyer and President Trump’s National Security Advisor. O’Brien was born in California in 1966. In 1988, he earned his B.A. in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1991, O’Brien acquired a J.D. degree (Juris Doctor) from the University of California Berkeley School of Law. The same year he was admitted to the California bar.[3] In between 1996-1998, Robert O’Brien was a legal officer with the United Nations Compensation Commission in Geneva, Switzerland. The Commission reviewed and processed claims that resulted from 1990-91 Iraq’s Kuwait invasion. Moreover, O’Brien served as a Major in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps of the US Army Reserve. Additionally, in his private law practice he served in a number of appointive positions under Bush, Obama, and Trump administrations. From May 2018 to October 2019, he was the Special presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs. Within a year after this appointment, he was given a rank of ambassador. Finally, in September 2019, President Trump appointed O’Brien as the 28th United States National Security Advisor.[4] *In the beginning of his tenure, O’Brien was to accompany Vice President Pence to meet Turkish President Erdoğan in talks over a ceasefire in Syria after the American abrupt withdrawal.[5] US Department of State: Michael R. Pompeo Secretary of State, Michael Pompeo who serves as Secretary of State since April 2018, was born in California in 1963. Prior to becoming Secretary of State, from January 2017 to April 2018, he served as a Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). Before Pompeo joined Trump administration, he was fulfilling his fourth term as a congressman from Kansas. While in Congress, Pompeo served in the House Intelligence Committee, Energy, Commerce, as well as House Select Benghazi Committee. Prior to his work in the US Congress, Mr. Pompeo worked as CEO at the self-founded Thayer Aerospace. After his decade-long work at the Thayer Aerospace, Pompeo served as a President of an oilfield equipment manufacturing, distribution, and service company Sentry International. As of an educational background of the Secretary of State Pompeo, he graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1986. He also served as a cavalry officer, who patrolled the Iron Curtain prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Moreover, Pompeo was an officer in the US Army’s Fourth Infantry Division. After leaving active duty of a cavalry officer, he graduated from Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.[6] James F. Jeffrey Office of the Secretary’s Special Representative for Syria Engagement, Special Representative for Syria Engagement and Special Envoy to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS Ambassador James Jeffrey is a senior American diplomat with an experience in political issues in the Middle East, Turkey, Germany, and the Balkans, who currently serves as the Secretary of State’s Special Representative for Syria Engagement and the Special Envoy to the Global Coalition to defeat ISIS. James Franklin Jeffrey was born in Massachusetts in 1946. He received his B.A. in History from Northeast University and an MBA from Boston University Graduate School of Management. He has a command of German, Turkish and French. From 1969 to 1976, Jeffrey was an Army infantry officer, with experience in Vietnam and Germany. Among the various senior ranks, he held in Washington, DC are: Deputy National Advisor (2007-2008), US Ambassador to Iraq (2010-2012), US Ambassador to Turkey (2008-2010), US Ambassador to Albania (2002-2004).[7] David Schenker Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs David Schenker is an Assistant Secretary of Near Eastern Affairs at the Department of State since June 2019. He received his higher education at the University of Vermont, University of Michigan, and the American University in Cairo, Prior to his service at the Department of State, from 2002 to 2019, he was a director of the Program on Arab Politics at the Washington Institute for Near Eastern Policy (pro-Israeli think tank). In years between 2002-2006 he held a position of the Levant country director in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, under which he was responsible for advising the Secretary and other senior Pentagon leaders on the military and political affairs of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Palestine. Prior to joining a public service in 2002, Schenker was a research fellow at the Washington Institute and coordinated centrally funded USAID projects in Egypt and Jordan.[8] Joel D. Rayburn Deputy Assistant Secretary and Special Envoy for Syria, Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs Joel D. Rayburn is an American diplomat who serves as a Deputy Assistant Secretary for Levant Affairs and Special Envoy for Syria since July 2018.  Joel D. Rayburn was born in Oklahoma in 1969. In 1992, after graduating from the US Military Academy at the West Point, Rayburn entered the US Army. Rayburn is a retired US Army officer who served in different missions in the Middle East, Europe and the US from 1992 to 2018.  He also holds a master’s degree in History from Texas A&M University and a degree in National Security Studies from the National War College. After his retirement from the Army, from 2017 to 2018, he was a Senior Director for Iran, Iraq, Syria. And Lebanon in the National Security Council at the White House.[9] Rayburn is an author of several books and articles on America’s Iraq invasion in 2003. For instance, in 2014, his book “Iraq After America: Strongmen, Sectarians, Resistance” was published by the Hoover Institution.  Additionally, from 2013 to 2017 he coordinated the US Army’s Project that aimed to produce history of the 2003 Iraq War. Under this project, Mr. Rayburn became an editor and co-author of the two-volumes of “The US Army in the Iraq War” that was published in 2019.[10] US Department of Defense: Dr. Mark T. Esper Secretary of Defense Mark Esper was born in 1964 in Pennsylvania. In 1986, he graduated from the United States Military Academy and received his commission in the Infantry. Once he completed Ranger and Pathfinder training, he participated in the 1990-91 Gulf War. He retired from the US Army in 2007 after a decade spend on active duty and 11 years spend on the National Guard and the Army Reserve. Once Esper left an active duty in the Army, he served as a Chief of Staff at the Heritage Foundation think tank. Afterwards, he was a senior Professional staff member on the Senate Foreign Relations and Senate Government Affairs committees. Under George W. Bush administration, he was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense in Pentagon. In 2006-2007, Dr. Esper held an Office of the Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President of Defense and International Affairs at Aerospace Industries Association. Among some other positions held by Mark Esper are the Executive Vice President for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectuals Property Center, Vice President for Europe and Eurasian Affairs (2008-2010), and the Vice President for Government Relations at the Raytheon Company. Prior to being sworn in as the 27th Secretary of Defense in July 2019, Mark T. Esper served as the Secretary of the Army from November 2017 to June 2019. Defense Secretary Esper holds a Master of Public Administration degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and a doctorate in Public Policy from George Washington University.[11] Mark A. Milley Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Army General General Mark A. Milley is the 20th Chairman of the Joints Chief of Staffs, which makes him American highest-ranking military officer, principal advisor to the President, the secretary of defense, and the National Security Council (NSC). Prior to being sworn in as Chairman on October 1, 2019, General Milley was the 39th Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army. Originally coming from Massachusetts, General Milley received his bachelor’s degree in political science from Princeton University in 1980. At Princeton he received commission from Army ROTC. Furthermore, General Milley obtained a master’s degree from in international relations from Columbia University and a degree in national security and strategic studies from the U.S. Naval War College. General Milley spent the last 39 years on multiple command and staff positions in eight divisions and Special Forces. Additionally General Milley’s operational deployments include the Multi-National Force and Observers, Sinai, Egypt; Operation Joint Endeavor, Bosnia-Herzegovina; Operation Just Cause, Panama; Operation Iraqi Freedom, Iraq;  Operation Uphold Democracy, Haiti; and Operation Enduring Freedom, Afghanistan.[12] John E. Hyten Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Air Force General General John E. Hyten serves as the 11th Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff making him the nation’s second highest-ranking military officer and advisor. General Hyten obtained his bachelor’s degree in engineering and applied sciences from Harvard University in 1981. He attended Harvard on Air Force Reserve Officer’s Training Corps scholarship. After graduation he was commissioned a second lieutenant. Prior to being involved in space operations, General Hyten’s career revolved around engineering and acquisition. He has commanded at the major command levels. In 2006, he deployed to Southwest Asia as Director of Space Forces for operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom. In addition, he commanded Air Force Space Command and was the Commander of U.S. Strategic Command.[13] Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr. US Central Command, Commander, General General McKenzie is originally from Alabama. He graduated from the Citadel in 1979. Afterwards he was commissioned into the Marine Corps and trained as an infantry officer. General McKenzie is an honor graduate of the Armor officer Advanced Course, Marine Corps Command and Staff College, and the School of Advanced Warfighting. Prior to assuming command of the United States Central Command in March 2019, he served as a Director of the Joint Staff as well as a commander of U.S. Marine Corps Forces of the Central Command.[14] [1] “Donald J. Trump”, the White House, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/people/donald-j-trump/ [2] “Michael R. Pence. Vice President of the United States”, White House, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/people/mike-pence/ [3] “Attorney License Profile”, The State Bar of California, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from http://members.calbar.ca.gov/fal/Licensee/Detail/154372 [4] “Robert C. O’Brien”, U.S. Department of State, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.state.gov/biographies/robert-c-obrien/ [5] “Who is Robert O’Brien, Trump’s national security adviser pick?”, Al Jazeera, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/09/robert-trump-national-security-adviser-pick-190918143724435.html [6] “Michael R. Pompeo”, U.S. Department of State, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.state.gov/biographies/michael-r-pompeo/ [7] “James F. Jeffrey”, U.S. Department of State, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.state.gov/biographies/james-f-jeffrey/ [8] “David Schenker”, U.S. Department of State, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.state.gov/biographies/david-schenker/ [9] “Joel D. Rayburn”, U.S. Department of State, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.state.gov/biographies/joel-d-rayburn/ [10] “Colonel Joel Rayburn”, Hoover Institution, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.hoover.org/profiles/colonel-joel-rayburn [11] “Dr. Mark T. Esper”, U.S. Department of Defense, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.defense.gov/Our-Story/Biographies/Biography/Article/1378166/dr-mark-t-esper/ [12] “Genereal Mark A. Milley”, U.S. Department of Defense, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.defense.gov/Our-Story/Biographies/Biography/Article/614392/general-mark-a-milley/ [13] “ General John E. Hyten”, U.S. Department of Defense,  retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.defense.gov/Our-Story/Biographies/Biography/Article/999157/general-john-e-hyten/ [14] “Commander, General Kenneth F. McKenzie, Jr.”, U.S. Central Command, retrieved on January 29, 2020, from https://www.centcom.mil/ABOUT-US/LEADERSHIP/Bio-Article-View/Article/1798987/commander-general-kenneth-f-mckenzie-jr/

The List of Demands Handed Over by the YPG to the Russian Delegation

22 October, 2019, the memorandum of understanding signed between Turkey and Russia in Sochi: Promises Given by Russia and the Facts

Free Burma Rangers (FBR) is a missionary, multi-ethnic humanitarian service movement that came into being in the late 90s in response to the growing needs of Burma’s suppressed ethnic minorities. As the organization claims its vision is to “Free the Oppressed”.[1] The groups main objective is to provide medical treatment trainings and deliver humanitarian relief mainly to IDPs (Internally Displaced Persons) and ethnic minorities.  Obtaining evidence of military violence and human rights violations in the area of activity is their secondary task. As a result, the group constantly publishes the reports on their findings. The FBR’s presence has surpassed Burma’s borders, as the team constantly involves into other conflict hotbeds such as Iraq, Sudan and Syria. Currently, a number of Free Burma Rangers in Syria hardly exceeds 10-15 people, including its leader David Eubank and his family members. In the conflict FBR takes a side of PKK/YPG and closely cooperates with its terrorist leader Ferhat Abdi Şahin.[2] The FBR views PKK/YPG synonymous to Syrian Kurds, therefore by taking PKK’s stance the organization claims to provide assistance to “a suppressed ethnic minority”.  Not surprisingly, the group never hesitates to accuse Turkey of the human rights violations and ethnic cleansing in its reports and publications. The Free Burma Rangers, under the guise of liberating the oppressed and humanitarian aid, have the image of a group that works as a  private military company which fights along the various groups in the conflictual zones and provides logistical support to them as well. The fact that the doctors employed by them provide training such as mine clearance and the use of weapons, supports these claims. Noor Nahas, Arslon Xudosi and Jett Goldsmith’s collaborated work on entitled “Are the Free Burma Rangers involved in fighting alongside the SDF?”  reveals a lot of original information in this context. David EubankFounder and Leader of the Free Burma Rangers (FRB) Eubank is a former U.S. Army Special Forces officer and is the founder and leader of the Free Burma Rangers (FBR). As he personally claims, David Eubank’s mission is to release people from oppression. The FBR includes men and women of various ethnic and religious identities. Eubank is married and has three children. All of his family members work alongside the 70 ethnic FBR relief teams in the conflict areas of Burma.[3] As it is known, the FBR recently began relief missions to help the people under the ISIS attacks in Iraq, in the Nuba Mountains of Sudan and in Syria.[4] Karen EubankDavid’s wife. Founder of the Good Life Club program Karen Eubank has been working together with her husband David for over 25 years in missions all over the World, including Burma, Sudan, Iraq, and Syria.[5] After a relief mission to villages attacked by Burma Army, she initiated a the Good Life Club program in 1999. She envisaged a program for children that would include both a preventive health care education and spiritually encouragement.[6] The Good Life Club counsellor accompanies each of FBR relief teams. The counsellor’s duty is to concentrate on children at each site the relief team operates. Hosannah ValentinewFree Burma Rangers member, Spokesperson Hosannah Valentine is a missionary aid-worker. Originally coming from Monatana, US. She spends much of her life traveling around the Southeast Asia and the Middle East. She is known as a FBR member and its spokesperson.[7] Eliya SamsonThe First Ranger, Chief Medic Eliya (Elijah) Samson is the Chief Medic for the FBR. He is a 37 year old married Karen Christian. Samson with his wife “Cat” have four children. Eliya is a medic, trainer, champion kick boxer, artist, singer and a cook. Samson served as a medic in the Karen Army (KNLA). He is known for his ability of taking decisions in complex and lifesaving situations.[8] Doh SayFBR Relief Team Leader Doh Say is a Karenni. He is a part of the headquarters team who currently serves a full-time FBR relief team leader. Doh Say is in charge of all the Karenni FBR teams. Moreover, he is responsible for the previously mentioned Good Life Club program. Huge amount of time he spends training new relief teams how to save people who have been attacked by the enemy. He also spends months in the jungle visiting the teachers that Partners support, and distributing their salaries for the next few months. Due to the harsh life conditions in the area the only way to get money to the teachers in Karen State is to hand it physically. By doing so, as they claim, Doh Say makes it possible for teachers to do their job in a war-torn country. [9] Sai NawngFBR’s Shan Teams Coordinator Nawng is the coordinator for all of FBR’s Shan teams.  He first join to FBR in 2004. Soon enough he became a team leader and the coordinator for all teams in the Shan region.  He has brought his team on several headquarters’ missions in Karen State, for training, and multiply helped with children’s program.  He leads the Shan teams that works in some of the most difficult areas of Burma that are both dangerous and physically challenging to get to. He was a Buddhist who converted to a Christian in 2007.  Nawng is married and has a child.[10] Zau SengKachin Ranger, FBR Medic and Cameraman Zau Seng is a Kachin FBR Ranger who was born on April 20,1980 and died on November 2, 2019 while filming the FBR operation near Tel Tamer, Syria. Seng had been a Free Burma Rager for over 13 years. He took part in FBR missions in Iraq, Syria, as well as Burma itself. Seng’s funeral took place on November 7 and was attended by terrorist leader Ferhat Abdi Şahin and other PKK/YPG members. [11] Jason TorlanoVolunteer FBR Medic Torlano is a FBR medic that had been noticed to be firing a rifle next to a PKK/YPG fighter. The group is known to train soldiers in land mine removal and battlefield communications. Therefore, its solely humanitarian approach is very questionable. [1] Free Burma Rangers, “Who We Are”, retrieved on December 20, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/who-we-are/ [2] Medium, “Are the Free Burma Rangers involved in fighting alongside the SDF?”, retrieved on December 20, 2019, from https://medium.com/@offbeatresearchinfo/are-the-free-burma-rangers-involved-in-fighting-alongside-the-sdf-ceeba1639ba1 [3] ABC News, “The man who willingly takes his family to war”, retrieved on December 13, 2019, from https://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-09-04/david-eubank-man-who-willingly-takes-his-family-to-war/8867792 [4] Free Burma Rangers,  “Letter from the Director”, retrieved on December 12, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/who-we-are/letter-from-the-director/ [5] Rudaw, “Karen Eubank: the woman behind a decades-long humanitarian mission”, retrieved on December 19, 2019, from https://www.rudaw.net/english/interview/30112019 [6] Free Burma Rangers, “Good Life Club”, retrieved on December 19, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/action/good-life-club/ [7] Berighthere, “Hosannah Valentine”, retrieved on December 20, 2019, from https://berighthere.wordpress.com/author/hosannahvalentine/ [8] Free Burma Rangers,  “Eliya Samson, First Ranger”, retrieved on December 13, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/2008/09/09/eliya-samson-first-ranger/ [9] Free Burma Rangers,  “FRB Profile: Doh Say”, retrieved on December 13, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/2008/10/24/fbr-profile-doh-say/ [10] Free Burma Rangers, “Story of a Shan Ranger”, retrieved on December 13, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/2012/09/14/fbr-report-story-of-a-shan-ranger/ [11] Free Burma Rangers, “Remembering Kachin Ranger Zau Seng who was killed by Turkish-supported Free Syrian Army attack”, retrieved on December 23, 2019, from https://www.freeburmarangers.org/2019/11/11/remembering-kachin-ranger-zau-seng-killed-turkish-supported-free-syrian-army-attack/

Syria in 2019: Important Developments

Refugees in Turkey and the World

Operating areas of WAGNER PMC

Vladimir Putin, Vladimirovich (President of the Russian Federation)[1] Vladimir Putin was born on October 7, 1952 in Leningrad. In 1970, Vladimir Putin became a student of law department at Leningrad State University and earned his degree in 1975. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Putin studied at KGB School No. 1 in Moscow. Between 1985-1990, he served in different positions and several countries including East Germany. After 1990, he returned to Leningrad and became assistant to the rector of Leningrad State University. In 1996, he moved to Moscow and he got the post of Deputy Chief of the Presidential Property Management Directorate. In May 1998, Putin was made First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office and two months later he was appointed Director of the Federal Security Service. From March 1999, he held the position of Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. Five months later, Putin was appointed to post of Prime Minister of the Russian Government. Vladimir Putin was elected as the President of Russia on March 26, 2000, and was re-elected to a second term on March 14, 2004. On May 8, 2008, he was appointed Prime Minister by presidential executive order. In 2012, he was elected against as the President of the Russian Federation. Following the election held on March 18, 2018, Vladimir Putin was re-elected as the President of the Russian Federation Igor Neverov, Svetoslavovich (Head of the Presidential Foreign Policy Office) Neverov was born in 1956. He graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) in 1978. Since then, Igor Neverov has worked in various diplomatic posts in the Foreign Minstry and abroad. In 1994-1998 he was Deputy Director of the Department of North America in the MFA. Afterwards in 1998-2002 he served as a Minister Counselor at the Russian Embassy in the United States. Since 2002 to 2009 he held a position of a Director of the North American Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry. Igor Neverov also served as an Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden from 2009 to 2014. Thereafter in 2014-2018 he worked as a Director of the Second European Department of the MFA of Russia.[2] Finally, on September 2018 Russian President Vladimir Putin appointed Igor Neverov as head of the presidential administration’s foreign policy department. [3]Neverov has a command of English, Spanish and French. Sergey Lavrov, Viktorovich (Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) Lavrov was born in 1950. He graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) in 1972. He is fluent in English, French and Sinhalese. After his graduation in 1972 he started his career at the USSR Embassy in Sri Lanka. In 1976-1981 Lavrov worked in the Department of International Organizations of the USSR Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Between 1992-1994 he served as a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia. Afterwards, Lavrov was a Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation at the United Nations for ten years up until 2004. Finally, since 2004 he is a Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation.[4] Mikhail Bogdanov, Leonidovich (Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation) Bogadanov was born in 1952. In 1974 he graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO). Since his graduation he held various diplomatic posts in the central office of the Foreign Ministry and embassies abroad, including: 1974-1977 the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen; 1977-1980 the Lebanese Republic; 1983-1989, 1991-1994: the Syrian Arab Republic. In years of 1997-2002 he seved as an Ambassador to the State of Israel.In 2002-2005 he was a Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department at teh Russian MFA. In 2005-2011he served as an Ambassador to the Arab Republic of Egypt. Since June 2011he is a Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs who is responsible for relations with the Middle Eastern and African states, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, as well as issues related to the Middle East peace process. [5] He is fluent in Arabic and English. Alexander Kinschak, Alexandrovich (Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department (MENAD) of MFA) Alexander Kinshchak  was born in 1962.Kinshchak graduated from the Moscow State Institute of International Relations in 1988, and started to work in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. From 2002-2004 he was an adviser-envoy at the Russian Embassy in Baghdad. From 2006 he worked as a Deputy Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department at the Russian MFA. In 2008 Putin appointed Kinschak as Ambassador of Russia to Kuwait. In 2014-2018 he was an Ambassador of Russia to the Syrian Arab Republic. Currently, since 2018 he is a Director of the Middle East and North Africa Department at the MFA of Russia. He speaks Russian, English and Arabic. [6] Oleg Stepanov, Vladimirovich (Director of the Department of Foreign Policy Planning of MFA) Born in 1972 in Moscow he graduated from MGIMO (University) of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1994. Stepanov speaks Korean and English. He is in the system of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs since 1994. He held various positions in the Foreign Ministry and abroad. In 2010-2016 Stepanov served as an advisor-envoy of the Russian Embassy in the United States on military-political issues. Since June 1, 2016 he serves as a Director of the Department of Foreign Policy Planning of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[7] Alexader Efimov, Vladimirovich (Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiaryof the Russian Federation to the Syrian Arab Republic) Efimov was born in 1958. He is a graduate of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. He joined the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1980. In 2004-2008 he served as a Minister Plenipotentiary, Deputy Head of Mission, Russian Embassy in Jordan. In years between 2008-2010 he worked as a Chief of desk at the Middle East and North Africa Department of MFA. In 2010-2013 Efimov served as a Deputy Director at the same department. In 2013-2018 he was an Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the United Arab Emirates. Finally, in October 2018 he was appointed as the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Syrian Arab Republic.  Efimov is fluent in Arabic and English.[8] Alexader Lavrentyev (Russia’s Special Envoy to Syria) Sergei Shoigu, Kuzhugetovich (Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation and General of the Army) Shoigu was born in Tuva in 1955. He graduated from the Krasnoyarsk Polytechnic Institute as a Constructing Engineer in 1977. Since his graduation in 1977 to 1991, he held different positions related to his area of specialization. In 1991, he became a Chairman of the Russian Corps of Rescuers. From 1991 to 1994, Shoigu held a position of the Chairman of the RF State Committee for Civil Defence, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters. Thereafter he became a Minister of the same Committe, where he served up until 2012 when he became The Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Defense of the CIS( Commonwealth of Independent States). Finally, in November of the same year by the Presidential decree he was appointed the Minister of Defence of the Russian Federation. [9] Dmitriy Utkin, Valeryevich (Founder and Leader of the PMC Wagner) Utkin was born in 1970 in Kirovohrad Oblast (Ukraine). Media calls him the founder of PMC Wagner. Known for his interest in the history of the Third Reich, his callsign resembles the name of one of the Hitler’s favorite composers Richard Wagner. Up until 2013, he was a lieutenant colonel and brigade commander of a special forces unit of Russia’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU). In 2013, upon his retirement from GRU he started working for the Morgan Security Group.  The company specialized in security against piracy and peformed missons around the world. In November 2017, RBC announced the appointment of Utkin as a CEO of Concord Management, the company of Evgeny Prigozhin.[10] In 2016, Dmitry Utkin attended the celebration of Heroes of the Fatherland Day in the Kremlin and was awarded with the Order of Courage. [11] Yevgniy Prigozhin, Viktorovich (Owner of the PMC Wagner) Prigozhin was born in Leningrad (Saint Petersburg) in 1961. He studied at the Leningrad Chemical-Pharmaceutical Institute, majoring in pharmacy. In 1979 Prigozhin was given a suspended sentence for stealing In 1981 he was accused of robbery and fraud and sentenced to imprisonment for 12 years. Prigozhin spent nine years in prison before he was released.[12] He started his business with the sale of hot dogs in 1990. From 1991 to 1997, a network of grocery stores was created; in 1995, the Wine Club bar-store on Vasilievsky Island was opened. In 2009 he opened a restaurant in the Government House of the Russian Federation. He is often referred to as “Putin’s chef”. It is believed that he is the owner of the Putin’s private army of PMC Wagner [1] Official Internet Resources of the President of Russia, “Biography of Vladimir Putin”, President of Russia Presidential Executive Office, retrieved on December 6, 2019, from  http://en.putin.kremlin.ru/bio/page-0 [2] RIA Novosti, “Биография Игоря Неверова” , retrieved on December 3, 2019, from https://ria.ru/20180929/1529631130.html [3] “ Игорь Неверов назначен начальником Президента по внешней политике” retrieved on December 3, 2019, from http://static.kremlin.ru/media/events/files/ru/131LCWOAkfh13zKrtWu4MXPcTGw8FWIm.pdf [4] The Ministry of the Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, “Lavrov Sergei Viktorovich”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from  https://www.mid.ru/en/about/structure/minister [5] The Ministry of the Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, “Bogdanov Mikhail Leonidovich”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from  http://www.mid.ru/en/about/structure/deputy_ministers/-/asset_publisher/7AT17IymWZWQ/content/id/647875 [6]  TASS, “Кинщак, Александр Александрович”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from https://tass.ru/encyclopedia/person/kinschak-aleksandr-aleksandrovich [7] Совет по Внешней и Оборонной Политике, “Степанов Олег Владимирович”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from www.svop.ru/степанов-олег-владимирович/ [8]Embassy of the Russian Federation to the Syrian Arab Republic, “Ambassador H.E. MR. Alexander Efimov”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from  https://syria.mid.ru/en_GB/ambassador [9] Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation, “Sergei Shoigu”, retrieved on December 3, 2019, from https://structure.mil.ru/management/minister.htm [10] Adam Taylor,(February 23, 2018), “What we know about the shadowy Russian mercenary firm behind an attack on U.S. troops in Syria”, the Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2018/02/23/what-we-know-about-the-shadowy-russian-mercenary-firm-behind-the-attack-on-u-s-troops-in-syria/?noredirect=on [11] Akeksander Gostev, (December 16, 2016), “Russian Paramilitary Mercenaries Emerge from the Shadows”, Radio Free Europe. https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-paramilitary-mercenaries-emerge-from-the-shadows-syria-ukraine/28180321.html [12]Alexander Rabin, “Diplomacy and Dividents: Who really controls the Wagner Goup?” Foreign Policy Research Institute, October 4, 2019. https://www.fpri.org/article/2019/10/diplomacy-and-dividends-who-really-controls-the-wagner-group/