Mr. Putin: Operative in the Kremlin (Geopolitics in the 21st Century) - Softcover

Hill, Fiona; Gaddy, Clifford G.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0815726171 ISBN 13: 9780815726173

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press, 2015

Synopsis

From the KGB to the Kremlin: a multidimensional portrait of the man at war with the West. Where do Vladimir Putin’s ideas come from? How does he look at the outside world? What does he want, and how far is he willing to go? The great lesson of the outbreak of World War I in 1914 was the danger of misreading the statements, actions, and intentions of the adversary. Today, Vladimir Putin has become the greatest challenge to European security and the global world order in decades. Russia’s 8,000 nuclear weapons underscore the huge risks of not understanding who Putin is. Featuring five new chapters, this new edition dispels potentially dangerous misconceptions about Putin and offers a clear-eyed look at his objectives. It presents Putin as a reflection of deeply ingrained Russian ways of thinking as well as his unique personal background and experience.

Praise for the first edition

If you want to begin to understand Russia today, read this book.
—Sir John Scarlett, former chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6)

For anyone wishing to understand Russia’s evolution since the breakup of the Soviet Union and its trajectory since then, the book you hold in your hand is an essential guide.—John McLaughlin, former deputy director of U.S. Central Intelligence

Of the many biographies of Vladimir Putin that have appeared in recent years, this one is the most useful.
—Foreign Affairs

This is not just another Putin biography. It is a psychological portrait.
—The Financial Times

Q: Do you have time to read books? If so, which ones would you recommend?
"My goodness, let’s see. There’s Mr. Putin, by Fiona Hill and Clifford Gaddy. Insightful."
—Vice President Joseph Biden in Joe Biden: The Rolling Stone Interview.

About this title

About the Author

Fiona Hill is director of the Center on the United States and Europe and a senior fellow in Foreign Policy at Brookings.

Clifford G. Gaddy is a senior fellow in Foreign Policy at Brookings. Hill and Gaddy are coauthors of The Siberian Curse: How Communist Planners Left Russia Out in the Cold (Brookings, 2003).

Review

"Remember the unverified "dossier" assembled by a shadowy foreign intelligence veteran who alleged all manner of nefarious, kinky and compromising ties between Donald Trump and Russia? Well, now the Trump team has its own dossier on Russian President Vladimir Putin. It's better sourced, convincingly written, damning in its conclusions - and its author is scheduled to start working at the White House." - Washington Post As experienced students of modern Russia, Fiona Hill and Clifford Gaddy are exceptionally well qualified to explain the experiences and influences which shaped the mind of Vladimir Putin... If you want to begin to understand Russia today, read this book." - Sir John Scarlett, former chief of the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) "Veteran Russia watchers Hill and Gaddy bring high-level expertise to bear on the enigma of Vladimir Putin in this illuminating study... [It] combines enough historical background and contemporary analysis for a graduate-level seminar along with an accessible writing style that won't deter more casual readers." -Publishers Weekly "Let it be stated unambiguously at the outset: this book is a tour de force." -Political Studies Review

About this edition

• Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0815726171
• ISBN 13: 9780815726173
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 520