Four ways to understand Russia’s Vladimir Putin — a president on the edge of war
Putin is one of the world’s longest-serving leaders currently in office
Putin said the right things: a new dictatorship was not his goal; democracy was the only political system that could endure. But something got lost in translation, said Tatiana Stanovaya, founder of R. Politik, a political consulting agency. “Putin doesn’t believe in a classic democracy, where you have a strong opposition with the rotation of elites who hold discussions in parliament,” she said. “He believes in good management, effective policy and responsible elites who should act in the national interest and that society must see it and support such authorities.” Putin’s conception of democracy also included adherence to and respect for “primordial, traditional values of Russians,” including patriotism and social solidarity that puts collective interests above those of the individual. Putin sees himself as the guarantor of those values, the leader and the protector, the steady hand on the wheel, Stanovaya said. “He thinks he knows what is better for Russia. For him it’s the same: what he sees as good for Russia and the objective national interests. He doesn’t see the difference.”