Quote: Curiously, Russian observers say the real goal is the opposite: not to alienate the West but to force America to recognise Russia as an equal partner, thereby overcoming the isolation caused by the war in Ukraine. The fight against Islamic State (IS) is intended to forge common ground between Russia and America. “This is an attempt to turn the page and achieve reconciliation with the West not by crawling to it on its knees, but by presenting Russia as an influential and indispensable power,” argues Alexander Baunov of the Carnegie Moscow Centre, a think-tank. | 
