Submit your comments on this article | |
Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia | |
Russia's Nightmare and the Danger of Abandoning Assad | |
2012-07-23 | |
By Walter Russell Mead
Part of Putin's support for Assad comes from fear that if religious extremists win in Syria, or if chaos allows them to develop bases and networks, fighters, money and other things will start moving through the mountainous regions into Russia itself. The "Sunni surge" sweeping the Middle East threatens Russia through the Caucasus and through Central Asia. | |
Posted by:trailing wife |
#12 nnaaahhhhh. I'm sure Iran will make good on that debt. Right? |
Posted by: Frank G 2012-07-23 20:38 |
#11 "Morely likely Putin's is afraid that if Assad falls, Syria will not pay the Russian debt." Doncha' just hate it when a cash-paying customer goes bankrupt - or their corrupt regime just collapses? Sheeesh ... it's hard to find stable third world dictatorships these days. |
Posted by: Raider 2012-07-23 20:28 |
#10 Also Chechnyan rebels are Sunnis and supported by Saudi Arabia, Iran's mortal enemy. |
Posted by: European Conservative 2012-07-23 17:27 |
#9 The overwhelming majority of Muslims in Russia is Sunni. Here you go. |
Posted by: European Conservative 2012-07-23 17:25 |
#8 are the ---> are like the |
Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2012-07-23 15:20 |
#7 Maybe they will have an epiphany one day and realize that Iranian Shites are also a threat A case of being too smart for their own good. They believe that MM are the Soviet leadership---nationalists masquerading as ideologists. |
Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2012-07-23 15:02 |
#6 Russians do consider Sunni Islam a threat---that's why they support Iran. Maybe they will have an epiphany one day and realize that Iranian Shites are also a threat. |
Posted by: JohnQC 2012-07-23 14:32 |
#5 Maybe Russia has picked up on our cynical old strategy of keeping the various Muslim factions in balance militarily, and pre-occupied with killing each other. |
Posted by: Glenmore 2012-07-23 12:12 |
#4 Morely likely Putin's is afraid that if Assad falls, Syria will not pay the Russian debt. |
Posted by: bernardz 2012-07-23 07:16 |
#3 The Russian plan, plain snd simple. |
Posted by: Dale 2012-07-23 06:51 |
#2 Russians do consider Sunni Islam a threat---that's why they support Iran. |
Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2012-07-23 03:19 |
#1 This is hard to believe. The Russians have long considered Syria to be a good customer for Russian armaments. The stuff about Syria being a bulwark against Sunni revivalism seems goofy |
Posted by: lord garth 2012-07-23 01:14 |