A post today on the Economist’s Eastern approaches blog looks at the conflicts of interests in Russia’s relationship with Syria, presenting it as a fair-weather friendship.  The latter stands to receive $1 billion worth of loans from its friend over the next two years, and they are tied up together over the South Stream gas pipeline and potential cooperation on new railways.  But there are policy issues that lead to discord between them: in part, due to Serbia’s change of stance on Kosovo, which it apparently presented as a ‘fait accompli’ to Russia, casting doubts on whether the two really had a strategic partnership; and then Russia’s ensuing support of Georgia’s breakaway states.