Amid growing competition for influence in Africa from the US, Moscow has been deepening military and economic ties there, especially in Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso. Now, it must deliver.
There are political and military inferences from last month's battle. Whether on air defences, sabotage operations, or equipment maintenance, ministries will be making notes and changing plans.
A five-day visit to Moscow ended with agreements to cooperate in a range of areas. Mali wants nuclear power and Russian military support, whereas the Kremlin has its eyes on a precious metal.
The UK this week pledged to spend billions more on its military readiness as part of a trend sweeping across the continent. The post-Cold War peace dividend now seems like a distant memory.
Shortly after Ukrainian drones destroyed or damaged dozens of Russian long-range bombers, the two warring parties sat down on the Bosphorus, discussing peace for the second time in two weeks.
Moscow's foreign minister has earned a reputation for being uncompromising and brusque but has also begrudgingly won the respect of many, even foes, for his professionalism
These days, Cairo looks more to Beijing and Moscow than to Washington, a policy change with its roots in the toppling of Hosni Mubarak more than a decade ago.
Trump thinks that lifting sanctions and reintegrating Russia will weaken Moscow's alliance with Beijing. That is short-sighted. The world Henry Kissinger exploited in 1970 is no longer.
Syria's government needs to centralise decision-making and bring armed groups to heel, but Kurds in the north-east want to establish a 'coalition of the unwilling' with Druze and Alawites. What now?
Donald Trump's ambassador to Türkiye and envoy to Syria has been having some critical conversations in regional capitals since April, from disarming Hezbollah to preventing another war with Israel
The gulf between the political and military establishments is widening. Politicians speak of a delayed victory, but military leaders warn of an inescapable quagmire.
The first in a two-part series explains how the country capitalised on its black gold decades ago to expand its economy horizontally, a stunning success that paved the way for Vision 2030
The Zangezur Corridor, a route through Armenia linking Azerbaijan and Türkiye, will be built and managed by Americans and will pass along the Iranian border, creating winners and losers