And that last bit is sure as hell coming, whether Putin retires voluntarily or not... Brazil is nice, this time of year. Ipanema Beach would be a lot more pleasant than Moscow, or Polar Star...
They do have the Baltic ports of St Petersburg and (not connected to Russia directly) Kaliningrad. These ports are slightly closer than Murmansk or Vladivostok, but not that much better. Losing Tartus and Hmeimim is disastrous for Russia's ability to project force.
And yes it is quite likely that the failure to properly extract Russian forces inside Syria is going to bite Putin badly. Possibly even a 1917 kind of bite.
They do have the Baltic ports of St Petersburg and (not connected to Russia directly) Kaliningrad. These ports are slightly closer than Murmansk or Vladivostok, but not that much better. Losing Tartus and Hmeimim is disastrous for Russia's ability to project force.
And yes it is quite likely that the failure to properly extract Russian forces inside Syria is going to bite Putin badly. Possibly even a 1917 kind of bite.
Fixed, with credit given. Good eyes, thanks!