The recapture of Aleppo by Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s forces presents a stark example of Washington’s pullback in the Middle East at a time when Russia and its partners have stepped in to drive events, said U.S., European and Arab officials.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/in-syria-russia-acts-as-u-s-pulls-back-1481763124
http://inopressa.ru/article/15Dec2016/wsj/syria.html
http://carnegie.ru/commentary/?fa=66450
http://nv.ua/opinion/gudkov/rossijane-i-ih-velikaja-derzhava-326836.html
https://www.novayagazeta.ru/articles/2016/12/15/70910-voyuem-za-rodinu-no-mogut-posadit
Putin lets Palmyra fall to ISIS while helping Assad take Aleppo, the Wall Street Journal says in an editorial.
http://www.wsj.com/articles/russias-syria-doublespeak-1481589744
http://www.zeit.de/politik/ausland/2016-12/aleppo-syrien-russland-putin-sanktionen
https://focus.ua/country/362607/
http://inosmi.ru/politic/20161213/238385616.html