An enemy of my enemy is my friend. Then considering that Russia is also fighting Islamic terrorism, why is it that the establishment powers seem so apprehensive to cooperate with Russia? I like all of the Russian people that I have met, and I am totally baffled that our government and mass media sees them as a foe.
Many will remember the bought-and-paid-for insider Hillary Clinton on her campaign trail in support of a "no fly zone" in Syria. That basically means sending warplanes in and shooting down trespassers.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/oct/25/hillary-clinton-syria-no-fly-zones-russia-us-war
The principle of Mutually-Assured-Destruction from the Cold War is more critical than ever. A war with Russia would no doubt be costly and bloody, but it also could escalate into a worldwide conflict involving nuclear weapons.
One reason I see our banking overlords in opposition to Russia is the Kremlin's recurring murder of journalists, since our corporate masters at least want to have the pretense of free speech in America to help keep the population appeased. This website is dedicated to chronicling the confirmed and suspected murders of Russian journalists and whistle-blowers:
https://cpj.org/killed/europe/russia/
So Russia is no doubt an outwardly authoritarian nation. But they also possess enormous oil and gas reserves, ranking as 3rd largest oil producer in the world. (Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/judeclemente/2015/03/25/how-much-energy-does-russia-have-anyways/#d6e92d07c590)
Russian energy companies are critical energy suppliers to China, and they are the most important energy exporters to Europe. The Syrian government, a Russian ally, rejected an oil and gas pipeline going from Qatar through Syria and Turkey into Europe back in 2009. (Source: http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-10-24/oil-gas-war-over-syria-4-maps)
Infrastructure like that would be major competition for Russia, effectively getting rid of their market dominance in Europe's energy markets. However, the oil pipeline may have been a smaller concern to policymakers. This article from truth-out argues that US military presence is a greater concern (http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/37685-the-war-against-the-assad-regime-is-not-a-pipeline-war).
If the conflict in Syria really is a geopolitical battle over energy resources, then it is a sad time for all of the people caught in the mess within those countries, and our mission of waging war for profit against "evil dictators" seems ingrained in our Pax Americana way of life.
But to the main point, I think working with Russia on many issues and avoiding conflict is a good thing. I hope that we can see past our differences. We can show them that free markets and individual liberty is a superior form of society than Communism and authoritarianism. We should not be fooled into wars that enrich a select group of bankers and corporate insiders at the expense of international relations that risk major conflict.