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China and Russia signed a huge natural gas deal that is worth about $400 billion.

China secures a long-term (30 years) provision of natural gas from Russia and Russia can reduce its dependence on the European markets as well as strengthen Russia’s position against Western sanctions

Russia is now moving closer to China’s side with regard to the territorial disputes between China and Japan

China and Russia last week vetoed a draft UN resolution to send Syria to the International Criminal Court for war crimes. China and Russia had vetoed three previous UNSC resolutions condemning Syria

In the joint statement issued by China and Russia, the main message is that China-Russia relations have reached a new stage of comprehensive strategic partnership and this will help increase both countries’ international status and influence, thus contributing to a more just international order

China and Russia will deepen cooperation under the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building in Asia (CICA), a new security framework in Asia-Pacific that conveniently excludes the U.S. and Japan.

, the main trigger is the recent Ukraine crisis that has seriously damaged Russia-West relations

mutual strategic needs as both China and Russia want to create a multipolar world that is not dominated by the U.S., particularly as China faces threats from the US-led alliance in Asia

China’s chance of winning maritime disputes with Japan partly depends on maintaining a good relationship with Russia

the NATO expansion is a serious threat to Russia’s national security and as such Russia has to fight back

new China-Russia alliance is now emerging and this will eventually lead to a multi-polar world order.

problems in China-Russia relations such as historical mistrust, the lack of a common threat, and conflicting interests in Central Asia

he most important factor determining whether China and Russia should form an alliance is whether the two countries have shared strategic interests and how long such shared strategic interests can last

China nor Russia could become a member of the Western bloc led by the U.S. because other allies of the U.S. would feel threatened by China and Russia

thus Russia has no better alternative to siding with China

, China’s number two position in the world means that China will not be supported by the U.S. with regard to most international affairs issues

Yan also refutes the argument that a China-Russia alliance against the U.S. would lead to another cold war.

ould be potentially high costs of such an alliance due to common problems such as fears of abandonment and entrapment

China could be dragged into an unnecessary war by Russia

Russia is unwilling to be China’s junior partner in the relationship

Russia wants to maintain good relations with all Asian states and thus will not side with China when it comes to territorial disputes between China and Japan

China-Russia alliance is unrealistic and a strategic partnership is more flexible and better for China.

seems that in the near future a formal alliance between China and Russia will not happen due to a variety of reasons.

U.S. militarily threatens both China and Russia at the same time

, a formal alliance will not occur

Sheikh’s case and several other recent terrorism prosecutions shed light on the growing importance of social media in the battles unfolding in Syria and Iraq -- both as a recruiting tool for Islamic terrorist groups like ISIS and the Al-Nusra Front, and as a means for the FBI to pre-emptively nab the would-be jihadis.

raises questions about the FBI’s conduct in attempting to head off terrorist recruits and whether they incited them to actions they wouldn’t have otherwise taken.

using fake social media identities to engage them

catfishing” by luring him into a personal relationship with a phony online persona.

During the investigation, the FBI published a webpage that purported to recruit individuals to travel to Syria and join Jabhat al-Nusra (

posed as a Syrian nurse and "used a Facebook page which promoted the ideology of Islamic extremism" to contact the suspect,

been able to expand their reach far beyond the traditional jihadi recruitment pool to a much wider audience -- including English-speaking Western nationals."

FBI at times goes too far to reel in American Muslims, most of them young, who are sympathetic to the Islamic extremist cause.

her client is “a lonely, mentally ill young man with a tremendous desire to be liked,” which made him susceptible to a paid FBI informant’s online encouragement.

Suspects began posting on Facebook or other social media expressing support for or seeking contact with one of the Islamic groups fighting in Iraq and Syria and were then engaged by informants or undercover FBI agents.

social media counterterrorism operations,

'Don't go there in any way, don't go there in thought or expression, don't even toy with the idea of becoming foreign fighters.'"

eventually agreed to join Al-Nusra, purchased a plane ticket to Beirut and prepared for his journey to jihad

informant, however, suggested that Sheikh instead join the Al-Nusra Front, an al Qaeda affiliate t

provided Sheikh with contact information for a supposed Al-Nusra agent.

could help get him inside

face up to 15 years in prison and fines of $250,000 if they are convicted

sending a message to potential terrorist recruits is indeed important.

defense attorneys in all four cases may argue that the FBI actions amounted to entrapment -- the act of tricking someone into committing a crime so that they can be arrested

making examples of individuals

sought to make contact with al Qaeda officials on Facebook and other social media, but instead drew the attention of an undercover FBI agent who presented himself as a recruiter for the terrorist group.

"ISIS recruits are more likely to reach out in the online universe seeking advice on how to reach the land of jihad than to consult the guidance of a traditional cleric or local community leader

that universe and creating honeypots to draw in and capture potential ISIS recruits, they can help sow doubts in the minds of would-be jihadists in the overall reliability of the Internet as a medium for recruit

Justice Department plans to review federal law enforcement practices on creating fake Facebook pages in light of an incident,