what we want in the end
And therein lies the rub.
We might want happy smiling faces in a prosperous secular democracy, neutral but friendly to the West.
What do the people want?
What do the people need?
For a start they probably need a strong man capable of bashing a few heads together so that peace and harmony is a more comfortable option.
What do they want? Each religious faction has its own agenda. The young single men probably want the buzz from firing their Kalashnikovs at human targets. The villages probably want nothing except to be left alone. The townsfolk probably want peace and trade.
Is the West's ideal of democracy relevant? It the Russian idea of an imposed dictatorship better? Certainly in Russia many, especially in Putin's home town, think he is the greatest thing since sliced bread (since bread is now available).