The statement announcing Assad’s arrival in Moscow also mentioned that Russian officials were in contact with representatives of the “Syrian armed opposition.”

The state TV presenter said opposition leaders had guaranteed the security of Russian military bases and diplomatic missions on the territory of Syria.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said bases in Syria had been put on “high alert” but claimed there was “no serious threat to them at the moment.”

Bashar al-Assad was Russia’s staunchest ally in the Middle East. The Kremlin had invested heavily in him. Russian authorities will find it difficult to portray his ouster as anything other than a setback for Moscow.

Yet they try… and look for scapegoats.

On Sunday evening, Russian state television’s main weekly news program took aim at the Syrian army, apparently accusing it of not fighting the rebels.

“Everyone could see that the situation for the Syrian authorities was becoming more and more dramatic,” said presenter Yevgeny Kiselev.

“But in Aleppo, for example, positions were abandoned practically without a fight. One by one, fortified areas were abandoned and then blown up, even though the government troops were better equipped and vastly outnumbered the attacking side. This is a mystery!” “

The presenter claimed that Russia had “always hoped for reconciliation (between different sides) in Syria.”

Then his last point:

“Of course we are not indifferent to what is happening in Syria. But our priority is Russia’s own security – what is happening in the zone of special military operations (Russia’s war in Ukraine).”

There is a clear message to the Russian public here.

Although Russia has poured resources into keeping Bashar al-Assad in power for nine years, Russians are repeatedly told they have more important things to worry about.