Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo: wiki commons.

TheHill – Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said Monday that he thinks Russian support for Syrian President Bashar Assad is partly a longing for the “old Russian empire” and Russian concern that the Arab Spring could spread beyond the Arab world.

McCain gave a speech at the American Enterprise Institute Monday on the situation in Syria in which he chided the Obama administration for not doing more, such as arming the opposition and considering airstrikes to establish safe havens for the rebels.

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