Before the White House ordered airstrikes in Syria, Russia had been the most dominant outside military force, participating in a bloody military escapade aimed at propping up Syrian President Bashar Assad and his government. In this 2012 photo, a Syrian woman kisses a poster of Russian President Vladimir Putin during a pro-Syrian government demonstration in front of the Russian Embassy in Damascus, Syria. Moreover, Russian President Vladimir Putin intervened in order “to draw a line in the sand against uprisings that had American and Western sympathy,” said Rojansky. With the blessing of Hafez Assad, Bashar Assad’s father who was then president, Moscow opened its naval base in Tartus in 1971, establishing a Soviet military foothold in the Middle East. Since then, Damascus has continued to benefit from military cooperation with Russia, including the receipt of armaments, and help with infrastructure development.

Source: Los Angeles Times April 07, 2017 03:00 UTC