Sorry, I got distracted from the thread topic by thinking about the ME - easy to do.
Russia has military bases in Syria and there can't be too many places left where they have an on-the-ground presence.
Someone better versed in geopolitics could describe the significance of them for Russia's world stance.
Sure, the Cold War is ostensibly over but the Russians continue to have strategic interests to pursue (and Putin and National pride, and being a bit pissed-off about how the Cold War ended).
