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						U.S. Navy boosts presence in Mediterranean ahead of NATO summit
						 The U.S. military will have two aircraft carriers in the Mediterranean Sea this month ahead of a NATO summit in Warsaw, as Washington seeks to balance Russia's military activities and accelerate its fight against Islamic State militants. 
 
						Syrian army, U.S.-backed forces advance separately against Islamic State
						 Syrian government troops backed by Russian air power moved to within 25 km (15 miles) of an Islamic State-held town in Raqqa province on Tuesday, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said, as state media reported air strikes against the jihadists in the area. 
 
						Russia deploys troops westward as standoff with NATO deepens
						 Russia is building an army base near its border with Ukraine, the latest in a chain of new military sites along what the Kremlin sees as its frontline in a growing confrontation with NATO. 
 
						Syrian and Russian aircraft step up bombing of Aleppo city: monitor
						 Nearly 50 air strikes hit rebel-held areas in and around the Syrian city of Aleppo on Sunday in some of the heaviest recent raids by Russian and Syrian government aircraft, residents and a monitoring group said. 
 
						Russia to Finland: We will respond to NATO Baltics activity
						 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told his Finnish counterpart the Kremlin would take unspecified measures to respond to increased NATO activity in the Baltic region, making clear he was vexed by Helsinki's hosting of alliance drills. 
 
						China says it hopes for counter-terror intelligence sharing with France
						 China hopes to establish counter-terrorism intelligence sharing with France as the Asian giant seeks greater international support for its anti-terror fight, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported citing an exchange between officials of the two countries. 
 
						Syrian army presses offensive against Islamic State
						 The Syrian army pushed into Raqqa province, home to the de facto capital of Islamic State, after a major Russian-backed offensive against the militants, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Saturday. 
 
						Saudi Arabia expands its anti-Iran strategy beyond the Middle East
						 Under King Salman, Saudi Arabia is expanding its confrontation with Iran well beyond the Middle East, no longer relying heavily on Western allies to smother Tehran's ambitions outside the Arab world. 
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