Russia and Myanmar: A pariah to the West is a friend to Putin
When an authoritarian regime is being buffeted by Western sanctions, it can typically expect a helping hand from a powerful friend: Vladimir Putin.
Driving the news: As Myanmar's military was firing on protesters and bystanders on Saturday and the U.S. was preparing its toughest response yet to the Feb. 1 military coup, Russia's deputy defense minister was in Myanmar to show Moscow's steadfast support and desire to deepen its "strategic partnership."
The big picture: Almost across the board — from Aleksandr Lukashenko next door in Belarus to Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela and, most dramatically of all, to Bashar al-Assad in Syria — when the West shuns a regime, Putin steps in.
Angela Stent, author of "Putin's World: Russia Against the West and with the Rest," says Putin's message to his fellow authoritarians is, "'We'll support any of you and sell you arms, and we'll never criticize what you're doing domestically.'"
https://www.yahoo.com/news/russia-myanmar-pariah-west-friend-223908312.html
As has been said before, Putin is a gangster with a gas station.
