Wokkafans,
Thank you for posting that 'briefing note', I enjoyed it! It demonstrates very well the murky nature of geopolitics - especially the total lack of absolutes. This is something that the bleeding heart brigade fail to appreciate when they take their "something must be done" or "there is no military solution" stances. But, sadly, it is also something that Obama, Cameron, Sarkozy et al failed to appreciate back in 2011 when they started declaring that certain leaders, Assad included, were "on the wrong side of history".
I wonder why the note made no reference to the Saudis? The conflict of interests in our relations with them is just about the thorniest geopolitical problem facing our leaders, IMHO!