The drama appeared to be an effort by Mr. Putin to show that he was in control. On Syria, Mr. Tillerson delivered what sounded much like an ultimatum to the Russians on Tuesday while talking to reporters at a Group of 7 meeting in Italy. But Mr. Putin and his acolytes in the Russian government see the situation very differently. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyThey shored up Mr. Assad and made him dependent on Russia’s presence. Advertisement Continue reading the main storyThere was some suggestion by the Russians that Mr. Lavrov and Mr. Tillerson would talk about no-fly zones, one way of keeping Mr. Assad’s air force grounded.

Source: New York Times April 12, 2017 11:40 UTC