Why Putin put out the bounty on American soldiers...

[Kablooie]

There is no strategic benefit in this, so why?

I read that recently Putin was losing influence over the oligarchs and needed to do something to regain their trust.

My guess is he did this to demonstrate to them how much Trump is under his control.
He knew Trump would do nothing to retaliate against this evil insult to America and it could help him regain respect among the powerful elite he needs to keep him in power.

[greyl]

1. It's probably cheaper. nt

[SunSeeker]

2. I think it's pretty obvious: he wants us out of Afghanistan, his back yard.

He figures Trump won't like the optics of dead American bodies and will be spurred to bring our soldiers out sooner.

Trump obliged, without asking for anything in return, a total cut and run. https://apnews.com/2e8a815a031e8da37075feec466694c2

Trump even ordered 9,500 troops withdrawn from Germany. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jun/05/trump-orders-9500-us-troops-to-leave-germany

Proving once again that Putin's got the goods on Trump.

[JI7]

3. Putin wants the US to lose influence in many places. Especially places where Russia

has their own history and Putin feels he has done claim to.

[zorbasd]

4. Remember awhile back -around two years ago- on a February in Syria?

This predominately Russian private merc army -owned by Putin's favorite oligarch restaurateur- sneak attacked a US camp position in the Syrian desert in the dead of night.
It was met with US air support that just pulverized, and laid to waste hundreds of Russian mercenaries scattered across the desert floor. The Russian planners were so cocky with their traitorboi in the WH.
They believed the US were weak pushovers, just like bunkerboi45, and that they would be able to get the best of American soldiers, but they lost bigly, very bigly!
That event really put an incensed mark on Putin until this very day..... he wanted vengeance.

[Wounded Bear]

5. Because he could...nt

[bucolic_frolic]

6. It is part of continued erosion of everything America stands for to make the US weak

That is what Trump is doing to us in everything he does. Period. We are being emasculated for political purposes.

[uponit7771]

7. "Putin was losing influence over the oligarchs" He's lost it long ago, Putin is a puppet in his own

... right and a puppet to the oligarchs he created

[Johnny2X2X]

8. He doesn't GAF

Trump is in business with Russia, has been for a long time. He's going to get burned because he has something to lose and they do not. And these types of relationships are always forced to a single crisis/decision point. At some point they're going to demand he do something that he cannot do and then they'll burn him. Russia has already crossed like 30 lines with Trump and all he's done is lay down for them and give them whatever they want on any issue.

There is not a single US foreign policy under Trump that doesn't benefit Russia in some way. The tariffs were crafted to benefit Russia, North Korean policy exempts Russia and only Russia from shipping there, Our policy in Europe might as well have been written by Russia, and on and on.

[moondust]

9. Remember the Soviet loss in Afghan?

Soviet–Afghan War

As a forner Soviet official, Putin would no doubt remember the Afghan war well. It weakened the Soviet Union and contributed to the eventual collapse of the Soviet government.

The U.S. aided the mujahideen in their fight against the Soviet army in Afghanistan. Maybe Putin just has a long memory and a chip on his shoulder and wanted to turn the tables on the U.S. for its contribution to the Soviet defeat.