What’s (State-Funded) Russian Media Saying About Syria’s Regime Change? Authored by Andrew Korybko via substack, Publicly financed Russian media’s reaction to Syria’s regime change is a lot different than most could have expected after they earlier warned that this could lead to an unprecedented terrorist crisis. Those concerns were warranted since Turkish-backed Harat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) is designated as a terrorist group and was originally part of Al Qaeda. Nevertheless, these outlets’ reactions have been surprisingly calm, thus suggesting a desire to play everything by ear for the sake of retaining Russian influence there. RT published two very thought-provoking op-eds since the Syrian Arab Army’s (SAA) epic collapse and Assad’s cowardly flight from Damascus that are worth reviewing in this context. The first is by Murad Sadygzade, who’s President of the Middle East Studies Center and Visiting Lecturer at the Higher School of Economics in Moscow, and answers the question of “Why did Syria fall so fast and what happens next?” He began by drawing attention to foreign meddling but then dove into domestic details. This approach is noteworthy since it had hitherto been very rare for publicly financed Russian media to talk about the Assad Government’s many shortcomings, but Sadygzade candidly addressed them: “A key turning point came when Assad lost the support of even those who had stood by him for years. Economic hardships, sanctions, and a growing sense of hopelessness led many to believe that change was inevitable, even if it came at the cost of destruction. The strategic mistake of the ruling elite – betting on a military solution to the conflict while ignoring political dialogue, both domestically and internationally – ultimately left Assad vulnerable to determined and well-organized adversaries.” The second RT op-ed is a republication of an article by Gazeta.ru political analyst Vitaly Ryumshin under the title “Assad’s

Russians Urged To Avoid US Travel On Fears Of Arrest Or Being ‘Lured’ By CIA In yet another diplomatic tit-for-tat move as relations with Washington spiral, Russia has warned its citizens to avoid all travel to the United States, saying they could face arrest. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova laid out in a briefing Wednesday that “Traveling to the United States privately or on official business is fraught with serious risks.” Via Associated Press While it at first sounds like Moscow is doing a bit of trolling here, the Kremlin seems genuinely concerned over individual Russians being contacted or “lured” by US intelligence operatives. Zakharova continued, “In this regard, we urge [Russians] to avoid non-emergency travel to the U.S. and its allied satellite states, including primarily Canada and, with a few exceptions, EU countries, for these upcoming holidays and in the future.” While the message raised the possibility of potential prosecution from US authorities, she also emphasized the following: “Our compatriots have long been hunted in the direct sense of the word by U.S. intelligence services,” she said. And more: Russians already in the U.S. should avoid situations where they could become “victims of provocations” and face arrest under the pretext of violating local laws.  “If the attention shown to Russian citizens by Americans is becoming suspicious and intrusive, it may make sense to cut off these contacts and reconsider travel plans,” she said. Interestingly, orchestrating ‘provocations’ is precisely what the State Department has long accused Russia of doing with Americans traveling in Russia, with the most famous recent case being the imprisonment of Brittney Griner (later released in a prison swap with Victor Bout). The US Embassy in Moscow has in turned warned all US citizens that arbitrary detention could come if they travel through Russia. This has tensions

The premier of Canada’s largest province said Wednesday he will cut off energy to the United States if President-elect Donald Trump imposes sweeping tariffs on all Canadian products.