"What do the irrational acts of two young American citizens of Chechen origin have in common with the Syria war," asked the Russian newspaper Nezavisimaya Gazeta in an editorial last week.
To most in Washington, the quick and easy answer to this bizarre question is: nothing. But for Vladimir Putin and much of the Moscow elite, Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev are indistinguishable from the rebels who are trying to bring down the blood-drenched regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
It's worth exploring this twisted logic. It explains why Russia continues to support and supply Assad even as he systematically uses artillery, Scud missiles and, most likely, deadly sarin gas against his own people, but it also shows why Russia and the United States should never become full partners in counterterrorism, as Putin proposed.