Assad’s fall nine years after Russia saved his regime is a stunning blow to Putin’s goal of forging Russia into a world power to compete with the United States.

Russia’s position in the Middle East now is in peril. Moscow has lost a key ally in Assad. Its other main allies, Iran and Hezbollah, are significantly weakened. Israel and Turkey, with whom the Kremlin has not had easy relations over the past few years, have been strengthened.

The Kremlin’s failure to prevent Bashar Assad’s swift downfall in Syria has exposed the limits of Russia’s power and dented its international clout.