There is bit of detail which many reasonable Western commentators like you, seem to overlook.
Putin is a trained KGB agent. His entire adulthood, his coming of age, his entire education, his personal relations everything in his life is marked by this fact.
He surrounds himself with similar people. For Christ sake he has a Foretaster, like some medieval King–he doesn’t eat anything which hasn’t been tested in front of him. He doesn’t trust anyone and a number of his associates have died under mysterious circumstances. Some in foreign lands e.g. London. Beresowski or Litvinenko comes to mind.
There is a category difference between how power / corruption plays out in Russia and the US. As of today you still have some sort of transparency and accountability within the government. This might change under Trump, but still, you are free to discuss / debate / study and request access to various documents without fear for your life. This is not the case in Russia.
To criticise and discuss these matters meaningfully, we need to recognise shades of grey and scale otherwise we are just treading water.
Because I grew up and emigrated from Russian occupied Hungary in 1982, Putin’s KGB connection puts me on high alert–like anyone else who has experience of the Russian autocratic system of governance.
I am not saying there are no issues within the US and its agencies, or that US interventions in foreign lands is in anyway ok. It is not.
But I am saying that it is worth appreciating the fact that such events (spying / interference etc), these government actions are openly debated and discussed in the US while there is very little information on Russia’s covert actions in public domain, Most of those who bring such things to light in Russia seem to have short lives. Yes Snowden and Greenwald (Assange is not a US citizen so his is a slightly different story) live abroad. But I don’t think anyone, even in their most vivid nightmares, thinks that the US government has plans to eliminate them.
And just another thought. You mention the middle east.
Please note, that the day after Trump’s election (facilitated by US stupidity and / or Russian interference) the rebel held areas of Aleppo were attacked / liberated (what ever you want to call it) by Russian air bombardment.
Basically, the outcome of the Syrian war seemed to have changed significantly within hours of the announcement of Trump’s victory.
So, the carving out of that oil corridor seems to go just fine.
And the irony of it is, that this outcome has been facilitated by the US governments / i.e. Obama’s refusal to intervene. While Assad was propped up by the Russians, the Rebels were largely left to their own devices and thus peaceful, democratic protests led to the destruction of a country and the strengthening of an unaccountable dictatorship. So there you go for non-intervention.
And I am not even saying the US should have intervened. I am merely pointing out that non-intervention also has consequences, especially, when your opponents follow a different logic.
EDIT to add this little gem on the rather sophisticated manipulation of US public opinion:
“The ascendancy of his secessionist organization says just as much about the state of media as it does about the Russian government’s ability to sway U.S. public opinion.”
