CNBC quotes Brent Scowcroft Center Resident Senior Fellow Ian Brzezinski on the rise of Russian troops being dedicated to fight against ISIS:
Islamic extremism has been a major concern for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said Ian Brzezinski, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. “Despite his government’s defense doctrines stating that the U.S. and NATO is Russia’s greatest threat, I have always felt that Putin regards Islamic extremism to be the most immediate threat,” Brzezinski said. “Putin cut his teeth destroying the Chechens. He regarded their rebellion as a manifestation of Islamic extremism. He also bolstered his own personal popularity in Russia by demonizing the Chechens as Islamic terrorists and by brutally crushing them.”