Putin Wants to Make Russia Great Again, Too

Vladimir Putin wants what each of his predecessors wanted: to make Russia great. Key to understanding his fascination with power alongside his seemingly bottomless distrust of the United States is the addition of one more word that should ring familiar: He wants to make Russia great - again.It was once. At least as he remembers it. Kremlin leaders in his lifetime strode the corridors of global power as equals, feared if not loved, and at the least, respected. Twenty-thousand nuclear weapons will do that, even for a country that never offered more than three-quarters of the standard of living enjoyed by those in Western Europe.And then it was gone.  Continue reading...