Putin Fails Liberal Democracy 101
Vladimir Putin is perhaps first among the anti-democratic strongmen that have emerged to soil the world. At the recent G20 summit he couldn’t resist taking a shot at liberal democracy,…
Putin (Vladimir)
Stalin returns (and he is Putin)
Sometimes the perversity of people seems to know no bounds. A fine example of this is illustrated in a recent article in Foreign Policy which discusses the rehabilitation of Stalin…
On Putin the poisoner
According to a report by former British High Court judge Robert Owen, the 2006 murder of ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko in London was carried out by Russia's Federal Security Service…
Chrétien, Putin and Harper—opportunity lost?
Former prime minister Jean Chrétien’s recent chat with Vladimir Putin in Moscow presents an opportunity to our government. Since Mr. Harper has, unlike all the other G7 leaders, refused to…
Presumption of innocence be damned—Putin killed Boris Nemtsov
In this country, the “golden thread” of criminal law, embodied in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, is the presumption of innocence. To quote the Charter, “Any person charged with…
Putin leads Russia from Communism to Fascism
Russian president Vladimir Putin is on record as saying that the collapse of the Soviet Union was one of the 20th century’s major geopolitical disasters. Some might say this suggests…
Harper—not a man for our time
Vladimir Putin is a corrupt bully and I don’t like the guy. Nor do I like the mischief he’s up to in Ukraine. Nonetheless, I am not impressed by Stephen…
Is Putin playing to the gallery?
That Vladimir Putin laments the loss of the Soviet empire is well known, so adding a few bits back in no doubt appeals to him. He also has a perfectly…
The Great Game—did Putin outplay the West in Crimea?
In the 19th century, the British and Russian empires’ strategic rivalry for supremacy in Central Asia was referred to as the Great Game. The game has never really ended as…
Did Putin really write that?
I’ve always thought of Vladimir V. Putin as an amoral ex-KGB thug. And I still do. But I have to admit he wrote a rather progressive op-ed piece in the…
Putin’s popularity prevails
It may be beyond rational explanation, but almost three-quarters of the Russian people approve of Vladimir Putin. The man is a corrupt thug with KGB written all over him, but…