From John Vincour, the International Herald Tribune:  Mr. Putin’s goal is not only to paint an American-led enemy in time for next month’s vote, but to get the West to back off on Iran and on deployment of NATO’s missile shield in Europe through threats and by sowing the notion that America is shoving its friends into confrontations they don’t need.

Are we hearing the sounds of geostrategic and economic time bombs ticking around the world? Or are these sounds simply noise, static or imagined that since Sept. 11, 2001, and the 2008 financial meltdowns have been amplified into deafening proportions?

From John Vandiver, Stars and Stripes:  The U.S. has been restructuring its Europe-based force since the end of the Cold War, when there were about 300,000 U.S. troops in Europe. There are about 80,000 today, and the drawdown continues with at least one brigade scheduled to return to the States by 2015, though military leaders hint it could leave much sooner.

From the AP:  President Dmitry Medvedev has appointed Russia's envoy to NATO as deputy prime minister in charge of military procurement.

From Nikolas Gvosdev, World Policy Review:  The Obama administration entered office three years ago with high hopes that it could repair America’s relationships with other key powers in the world.

On December 10, the largest demonstrations since 1991 shook at least 15 cities in Russia. In Moscow, tens of thousands took to the streets, protesting the fraudulent parliamentary elections on December 4.

From Jim Hoagland, the Washington Post:  It is the Arab Earthquake. Not “spring,” not “wave of reform,” not even “awakening” can describe the systemic upheaval that has engulfed Syria, where other Arab nations actively press for the overthrow of the regime headed by Bashar al-Assad. Let us call an earthquake an earthquake.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin’s ruling United Russia party must feel embarrassed.