As a supporter of the deposed regime in Syria, Moscow wishes to retain two military bases there as a logistical base for its operations in the Sahel. Moreover, Vladimir Putin's inability to save his Syrian ally is casting doubt among West African juntas on the solidity and reliability of their Russian partner.

Ousted Syrian president Bashar Assad has fled to Russia after Islamist rebels rolled into the capital Damascus and ended his despotic family’s 50-year reign of terror.

Assad’s regime collapsed faster than anyone had predicted. The sudden nature of its downfall left many scrambling for answers, and it seems no one was more unprepared than Assad himself.