by Susan Katz Keating Russia hails the Oreshnik as unstoppable; but in 2023, seven of its hypersonic Kh-47M2 cousins were shot down by U.S.-made Patriot air defense systems. Moscow says the strike was payback, using its sharpest blade: the Oreshnik hypersonic ballistic missile. In the overnight hours late Thursday, Moscow …
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COMMENTARY by Susan Katz Keating Fifty-plus years of Soldier of Fortune brings one question repeatedly to my inbox: Where did this all begin? The answer is not a mystery; it’s history. Soldier of Fortune grew from Vietnam, and its legacy still drives us today. To understand Soldier of Fortune, you have to …
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COMMENTARY by Susan Katz Keating For two weeks, the Marinera ran. Formerly known as Bella 1, the sanctioned tanker fled the U.S. Coast Guard on the high seas, employing methods that read like a sanctions-evasion playbook. It flew a false flag. It switched off transponders at sea. It attempted to reflag …
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by Susan Katz Keating In retrospect, it seems fitting that I met Viktor Belenko in Reno. He was a gambler hanging out in a gambling town, surrounded by pilots in their fast moving aircraft, barreling wildly around pylons. I went there many years back, looking for stories to be found …
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The French Foreign Legion these days is more exclusive than it used to be. If there is an Interpol notice against you, for example, you won’t get through the gate. A century ago, however, a man who wanted to escape his past and assume a new identity could disappear into …
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COMMENTARY by Susan Katz Keating Messages from colleagues and operators have flooded my inbox over the past day. The question underlying all of them is the same: Did Seth Harp cross a line that, in national security history, has carried life-and-death consequences for Americans? Some asked it more bluntly. Others asked …
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by Susan Katz Keating These endorsements are about who can lead the fight now. By popular request, and after careful consideration, Soldier of Fortune is making a rare endorsement for the National Rifle Association Board of Directors. Soldier of Fortune and I endorse Major General (Retired) Ken Bowra and Jerry …
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ANALYSIS by Susan Katz Keating Long before the U.S. military strike that captured Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Venezuela was not simply an authoritarian regime awaiting a reckoning. It was a hijacked democracy; a country that began with elections but saw its institutions hollowed out and repurposed by leaders who …
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ANALYSIS by Susan Katz Keating Originally published on December 10. “Rumors spread so fast over the weekend that people rearranged their lives just to be on “Venezuela Watch.” Over the past few days, speculation has gone wild that the U.S. is about to flex military muscle in Venezuela. Rumors spread …
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COMMENTARY by Susan Katz Keating I recently did my annual demographic survey on the Soldier of Fortune audience – and the results prompted me to send a message to certain readers. Old hands, listen up. This is for you. Bear with me for a little context. In the survey, the big …
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Soldier of Fortune Magazine The Journal of Professional Adventurers
