WorldBEIRUT, AFP -Convinced that negotiations with Washington are now futile, Russia has decided to throw its military might behind the Syrian regime's drive to recapture Aleppo, analysts say. By backing government forces in Aleppo, Moscow seeks “to close that important pocket of rebels' resistance at last”, said Igor Sutyagin, a Russia expert at the Royal United Services Institute in London. - An alliance of 'necessity' - ============================== “Without Aleppo, Assad is nothing but a half-president. Assad already controls most of the cities he considers key in Syria -- Damascus, central Hama and Homs -- with only Aleppo remaining. “Russia's military tactics in Aleppo are nothing like those used in Grozny,” said Alexandre Golts, an independent military expert.

Source: Sunday Times September 27, 2016 12:22 UTC