that s why the stakes for these games are important. he s popular in some parts of the world. arguing that western democracy is failing. right. our oh problems in washington. so this is a really interesting moment to see, can he provide security, and does the putin style of authoritarian rule gain credibility or not in the next six weeks. and you know, ann, final question to you. the white house has actually offered support in security preparations. i guess the sense they have made it clear they re willing to be helpful in terms of counterterrorism around the sochi olympics, not necessarily wanting to get involved in counter frichl in other part of the country. but it s unclear at this point whether or not the russians have accepted the assistance from the americans. no. it s not clear whether they have accepted this new offer, which was sort of made in slightly an odd back hand way today. there is a long history of u.s./russian counterterrorism cooperation in the caucuses an