Operation Serval - Expeditionary Warfare in Central Africa: Islamist insurgents were threatening to take control of Mali in early 2013. In a lightning campaign that spring, French and allied African forces inflicted a stunning defeat on the Islamists.

The Dragon That Engulfed the Sun - Chinese Invasion of Japan? A war between China and Japan seems a remote possibility, but it is a possibility. The question is whether China has the military wherewithal to stage a successful invasion of Japan.

Sixth Fleet - Naval Confrontation in the Cold War: As the Cold War deepened, the US Navy took over protection of the Mediterranean Sea from the British Royal Navy just as a series of confrontations erupted in the Eastern Mediterranean throughout the 1970s and 1980s.

Eternal War - Chechnya, 1994-2009: Chechnya declared its independence after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Russian forces invaded in 1994, sparking a nearly two-decade long conflict.

Axis of Evil - Conflict in the Persian Gulf: Iran's continued influence in the Middle East raises the possibility of a renewed conflict in the Persian Gulf with the United States and its Western-backed Allies.

Soyuz '81 - Soviet Plans to Invade Poland: When the growing economic crisis in Poland gave rise to the Solidarity labor movement, the Soviets began plans to snuff it out with a military intervention.

Putin Moves South - Potential Conflict in the Eurasian Heartland: Central Asia has been a crossroads for millennia. In the 21st century conflict looms in the region as international powers vie for control of important natural resources and military dominance.

Cold Start - The Next India-Pakistan War: The Indian government unveiled its current “Cold Start” war doctrine for use against Pakistan on 28 April 2004. The new strategic plan is to be used in response to Pakistani acts against India, including proxy wars or terrorist attacks supported by, or otherwise linked back to, Islamabad.

The Hunt for Osama bin Laden: On 2 May 2011, US Naval special operation forces killed Osama bin Laden in Abbottabad, Pakistan. His death marked the end of a decade long hunt to bring the perpetrator of 9/11 to justice.