Russya: new Concert Promoter

      Hey, all you newsies: join us for a free concert in Syria.  What?  Are you kidding me?  Syria?  Well,  it's PR: promotion of all good things Russyan-in Syria, where Mr. Putin is trying to showcase his new image for the largest country in the world.  This concert was staged in the ancient ruins in the city of Palmyra, where the ISIS pirates had taken great efforts to tear down many of the remaining structures.  It was held in an amphitheater with a raised stage for the musicians.  The orchestra played classics composed by renowned Russyan artists.
     The media was escorted to the site by the Russyan military in buses escorted by armored vehicles and aerial support in the form of armed helicopters.  The stated target of exposure to the  military results of a recent campaign to assist the regime of Bashar al-Assad, the regime targeted by rebels for the last 5 years.
      This dog-and-pony show put on for the international press, underscores the continuing efforts of the Kremlin to demonstrate to the world that Russya is a fitting player on the world stage, right up there with the USA and C.H.I.N.A., Inc(and Germany and the U.K., and the Swiss banks, and, and).
But when it was over, no vodka was served.  Media members were put back in their buses, and returned to the airbase where they had stayed for the last 72 hours.   All the Kremlinistas were convinced that they had achieved a great PR coup, overshadowing the US military claim of wiping out another top ISIS commander.
     Oh, Mr. Putin: Come, on!