I'm jokingly describing the situation where Putin was the first to condolence the US after 9/11 ( for personal gain). But was hurt in his ego because of Iraq,

I'm jokingly describing the situation where Putin was the first to condolence the US after 9/11 ( for personal gain). But was hurt in his ego because of Iraq, since it was in/near the self-claimed Russian sphere of influence and he wasn't aware until it started. Relations between the US and Russia deteriorated after that. He's been planning "revenge" for the next 20 years => the reference to little guys...