What a Decade-Old Conflict Tells Us About Putin

 

"In epochal moments such as these, when a strongman uses the might of his military to invade another country, we often look backwards to search for the moments that brought us to the present, seeking out signs of what was to come. In the case of Putin and Russia, this effort has concentrated on his domestic political evolution, and his relations with the occupants of the White House. Yet one can trace a straight line from the Libya episode—in which Putin’s country initially stood on the sidelines, and which occurred when he was on his four-year hiatus from the presidency in the prime minister’s office—to today’s devastating war in Ukraine."

 read article by Kim Ghattas