The cessation of the Cold War in 1992 had many consequences. Following the disintegration of the USSR, the Russian military was in complete disarray. The funds to continue paying troops were not forthcoming and corruption was as much a part of the culture as itchy uniforms and lousy food, and senior officials began brokering arrangements with arms dealers to sell weaponry of all kinds. The Soviet Union had developed sophisticated suitcase nuclear weapons and one of the most disconcerting legacies of these times was when several of these devices disappeared, and despite the tireless efforts of...

Al-Kuwaiti, unbeknown to Matt Talbot, had survived the attack on the Al Qaeda bunker in Afghanistan, and embarks on a car chase through rural countryside in the UK culminating in disaster. Meanwhile, trouble is brewing in North Korea again. A fifth tunnel is detected while being dug north of the Demilitarized Zone towards Seoul. Worse still, purchases of sarin gas in Damascus by North Korea muddy the waters. Following an unusual dearth of rhetoric from the North, forthcoming missile and nuclear tests are detected and the US Administration is losing patience with the increasing frequency of...