I agree with Sergey that President Vladimir Putin鈥檚 sudden announcement last week that he was withdrawing鈥斺攆rom Syria was a surprise in a limited sense but was logical for Putin more broadly. Unlike Sergey, though, I鈥檇 argue that while Putin has successfully escaped from the 鈥渜uagmire鈥 in Syria, it鈥檚 not because he achieved his goals; rather, he鈥檚 cutting his losses and getting out while he still can
Baev, Pavel K. & Sergey Aleksashenko (2016) Did Putin win in Syria? Or is he cutting his losses?, Order from Chaos (1鈥4). 21 March.