Alexander Decina, Eugene Steinberg
Security, Syria, Russia, United States
Moscow wants prestige. That means the conflict is not as zero-sum as it may seem.
Two weeks after Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow had “generally fulfilled” its aims in Syria and would withdraw the “main part” of its forces, Russia’s defense ministry revealed plans to purchase 10,300 medals for returning troops. The triumphant display—intended separately for the West, Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, and the Russian public—belies a more complicated truth. Putin’s real accomplishment in Syria was not in improving Assad’s position, and Russian operations may not significantly change. Rather, Putin’s true success has …read more
Source: The National Interest
