Why does this article victimize Putin? Graham is writing like Putin was cornered and we misunderstood him; he was just reacting to our over-aggression and/or our passiveness. Putin is in control here, he wiggled into power and then wiggled to keep it for two and a half decades now, not to mention his status at the head of the KGB for like 15 years prior.

The West fucked up cause they didn't react, whether they coulda or shoulda. They were cornered and checked by granddaddy Putin when he annexed Crimea, and marched into Georgia in '08-'12, and started hustling ex-Soviet nations into let's call it "familiar" economic pacts over the last two years-- Armenia's dickbag president recently signed on said deal, and it caused the first major violent riot since Soviet collapse in the country.

My point is, nobody turned against anybody. It was set this way since day 0, and common interests urging the west and Russia to conduct operations with each other in the Middle east from time to time doesn't make them allies or friends in any way, so as to be terribly surprised that Putin "turned against" his dear old pals. Come on.

Edit: I am sporadically an asshole. apologies.