According to the Asia Times:
Do not be surprised to see three or four divisions of the Russian army in the Sunni triangle before year-end, with an announcement just prior to the US presidential election in November. Long rumored (or under negotiation), a Russian deployment of 40,000 soldiers was predicted on July 16 by the US intelligence site http://www.stratfor.com, and denied by the Russian Foreign Ministry on July 20.
The article suggests that this is a change of policy from attempting to appease Muslims into believing we are on their side (as in the Balkans), and now simply to kill resistance. The US does not have the stomach to do Fallujah, but the Russians most definitely do! Also the Russians want to learn the effective things the US does…
Alexjacobson's Weblog 
“America’s squeamishness in the face of large-scale civilian casualties mystifies the Russians, who know about such things.”
It’s interesting to note the evolution of your humanitarian arguments in support of the Iraqi people.
The enthusiasm with which you regard the notion that the Russians, what with their history of effecting Stalin’s genocides and all, should be brought in to whup the Muslims “Grozny style” seems to mark first point in your blog in which you’re actively considering the benefits of devaluing life at the level of a world religion.
I take it you also agree with Wretchard’s casual implication that the Bosnian Muslims would’ve been better left for dead, also.
Well, if they really do send in the Sovs, at least they’ll finally have some chemical weapons in Iraq (a great solution to the tricky problem of urban guerilla warfare in Chechnya, I’ve heard)
I also enjoyed how the article mentions that ex-KGB Col and statist Vladimir Putin’s reward would be “a free hand” for dealing with the former Soviet Republics. I’d heard some people argue that jihadis are the ‘blowback’ from cost/benfit thinking of the Cold War… ironic to imagine the reconsitution of the Cold War as the blowback from fighting jihadis…
I don’t actually support groznying Fallujah. If I did, I would say that the US should do it and not the Russians. The point of this sort of cooperation would be to take the multilateralism card away from the Democrats in the run-up to the election.
I think the Iraqis need to deal with Fallujah themselves. It will be the first major test of the new government and will probably only happen after the Iraqi elections (unless we have war with Syria/Iran beforehand).
Ah, I see. Glad you don’t actually believe that. For a moment I was worried.
I, too, am curious to see how or if the Iraqis are capable of handling Fallujah.