This whole natural gas thing that Putin is pulling with Europe is all about bending them to his side against the U.S.. I don't think Putin was associated with 9/11, but he's definitely been getting his groove on since then, especially with Iran.
Why don't you think that the KGB/FSB had an interest in helping al-Qaeda when al-Zawahiri (mister #2) has been named as a KGB/FSB agent?