You could not have said it better. This is exactly what Kreml is aiming for.
1. Sending troops to both sides = The Soviet method of Provokatsiya http://20committee.com/2014/03/29/understanding-provocation/
2. I doubt anyone is telling the truth anyway.
Yes, this is the purpose of Soviet 2.0 propaganda, since they do not like the reality, make all doubt what is happening
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2015/apr/09/kremlin-hall-of-mirrors-military-information-psychology
If you prefer the Russian versions http://www.theguardian.com/global/2015/apr/10/kremlin-hall-of-mirrors-peter-pomerantsev-long-read-russian-translation
From that link:
Understanding Provocation
One of the most powerful tools the Kremlin has in its secret arsenal of Special War is provocation, what they call provokatsiya.
While Moscow cannot claim to have invented this technique, which has existed as long as there have been secret services, theres no doubt that Russians have perfected the art and taken it to a whole new level of sophistication and deviousness. At times, it can become a strategy all on its own (not always, mind you, with edifying results).
Provokatsiya simply means taking control of your enemies in secret and encouraging them to do things that discredit them and help you. You plant your own agents provocateurs and flip legitimate activists [in this case, dupe actual Jihadis -ETL], turning them to your side.
When youre dealing with extremists to start with, getting them to do crazy, self-defeating things isnt often difficult. In some cases, you simply create extremists and terrorists where they dont exist. This is causing problems in order to solve them, and since the Tsarist period, Russian intelligence has been known to do just that.
While this isnt a particularly nice technique, it works surprisingly well, particularly if you dont care about bloody and messy consequences. ..."
http://20committee.com/2014/03/29/understanding-provocation/
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In other words, it's kind of like starting a fire, or better yet, pouring gasoline on a fire, in order to be a 'big hero', being first on the scene to put it out. Except in this case, you get to grab control over the buildings and town you helped 'saved' from the fire.