Vladimir Putin is on a misinformation campaign to the Russian audience on the military intervention after the 1979 Afghanistan invasion outside the previous Soviet Union. It is reported that Putin is falsely narrating to cover up the objectives of Russian intervention in Syria. He has also come up with a false narration about the Islamic State of Iraq misguiding the International Society. Just two days before starting the Russian air campaign, on September 28, he started a false narrative seeking international intervention and forming a coalition against the ISIS. On September 30, he steps in on the Syrian issue not to fight them but to stop the influence of US in the Middle East and showcase the Russian military power in the region.

Putin’s air campaign was targeted at the Syrian armed groups in a war with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and not the ISIS. Reports reveal that ISIS has around 7,000 fighters from the former Soviet Union, and it has declared its governorate in the North Caucasus region. ISIS is viewed as a serious security concern by Moscow, but the behavior of Russia reveals that it is using anti-ISISI as a tool to achieve its larger objectives. The goal of Russia is to preserve the Syrian regime and ensure the influence of the US and its allies is diminished in the region.

Putin is running this misinformation campaign to make his real objectives unclear and maneuver the US and its allies to help Russia secure its goals. Russia has used the November 13 Paris attack in its favor to lure France into its ambit. The US may also accept the proposal put forward by Russia in ending the civil war in Syria.