Hal Brands, Columnist

Putin Wins 16 More Years of Reckless Behavior

The West consistently underestimates his willingness to take extreme risks. Next project: Building a buffer zone around Russia.

July 2, 2020 at 9:00 AM UTC

By Hal Brands

Hal Brands is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist and the Henry Kissinger Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.

The future’s so bright ...
Photographer: Alexey Nikolsky/AFP/Getty Images

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It is shaping up to be quite the week for Vladimir Putin. The Russian autocrat appears to have won a constitutional referendum clearing the way for him to remain in power until 2036. And Putin has once again caused a firestorm in Washington, this one ignited by reports that Russian military intelligence offered to pay Taliban fighters to kill American troops in Afghanistan.

If the Covid-19 pandemic is pushing America into ever-deeper competition with China, the challenge from Russia — the less mighty but more aggressive of the authoritarian powers — won’t be fading anytime soon.