I think Putkin was warning Obama "who suceeds Assad?" a very good question. Going by memory -Putkin was amendable to having an election, and letting Assad run against other candidates.
Obviously Russia has much more at stake in Syria then we do, and sending in helicopter gunships..is despicable; but one has to be careful about overthrowing gov'ts.
Look at Libya - everyone seems to think "we saved the Libyanas from Gaddafi" - problem is Gaddafi had his ppls best interets at heart (at least in the cities, and the west),
and the place in ungovernable now -militias run tribal / ethnic areas. And we've laid waste to the place.
Work with the UN, but not to overthrow regimes. It's not our business, we stayed out of Egyptian affairs, and perhaps if we continue to do so, the Muslim Brotherhood,
might not turn against the west. Still a large probability, given our history there (Mubarak), but we've had a hands off policy.
Stay out of nationbuilding, stay out of foreign civil wars. The blowback always happens, and really it's not our call.
