Steve Mullin (13 Dec 2015)
"2 Ancient Messianic Prophecies Mention Russia and Turkey as Major Signs"

This is a really interesting article considering the events in the news. 

First, before Rabbi Vilna Gaon's death in 1797, he said "When you hear that the Russians have captured the city of Crimea, you should know that the times of Messiah have started, and when you hear that the Russians have reached the city of Constantinople (Istanbul now), you should put on your Shabbat clothes and don't take them off, because it means that the Messiah is about to come any minute."

So Crimea was captured in 2014 and Turkey just escalated tensions with Russia by shooting down one of their planes.

Second, The Kloisenberger Rebbe, a 20th century Hasidic rabbi, echoed the Vilna Gaon’s second sign when he wrote “in the name of the Ba’al Shem Tov, when you see the Russian horse in Constantinople, a city in Turkey, you should know Moshiach (Messiah) is about to arrive.”
According to the Kloisenberger Rebbe, in addition to the Russian military presence in the Turkish city of Istanbul, the Ba’al Shem Tov foretold another sign of the impending arrival of the Messiah – “the Russians will come, they will come and be together with the sons of Ishmael.” That is, when the Russians join forces with the spiritual descendents of Ishmael, who today are identified as those of Islamic descent, it’s another sign of the coming of the Messiah.
Militarily, Russia is already connected with its Shiite Muslim allies in Syria and Iran. As reported in Breaking Israel News, a 75-year-old prophecy connects Russia’s unfolding role in Syria to Gog and Magog. Since late September of this year, Russia has become a central player in Syria, leading many to hypothesize that Putin is Gog and Russia is Magog.
The messianic alliance between Russia and the Shiite Muslims of Syria and Iran was deepened by a recent gesture of friendship off the battlefield. On November 23, Russian President Vladimir Putin gave a rare and valuable gift to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Putin gave Khamenei one of five copies of the original handwritten Koran, the Muslim text that dates back to the 7th century.
Steve M