Michael Kimmig, a professor at the Catholic University of America, said Putin’s approach has become more violent lately, especially at the diplomatic level.
He added, “He is behaving as if he needs to get immediate answers, which is unusual for diplomacy in general and Russian diplomacy in particular.”
In his attempt to explain this, the American expert says that Putin’s behavior may stem from disappointment, as he feels that Russia since 1991 has been receiving lectures and dictations from the West, and the expansion of NATO to the east has become a unilateral act from Washington, which believes that it has the power and the right not to In Western Europe, a Russian is on his doorstep in Ukraine and elsewhere, which is unacceptable for Putin.
He pointed out that Putin carries what is considered Russia’s grievances and talks about them in front of the West and used this crisis to express these grievances.
The American expert says that Putin’s enormous military power has made him change toward hardening political positions, as he has shown willingness to use it in Ukraine and Georgia.
And Putin believes, according to the expert, that this military power gives him influence, which is more evident in Ukraine than elsewhere.
He pointed out that the Russian president has changed more as his confidence has increased due to the consolidation of relations with China, which was not present in 2014, which means that he believes that he is able to resist Western pressure.
He indicated that his military intervention in Syria in 2015 was successful, and he believes that he is on the right path in foreign policy.
From Putin’s perspective, the West is in a state of decline, and is no longer what it was in the past. American policy has recorded a series of failures in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The American expert says that the Russian president considers that Washington has become less committed to European security and is divided against itself.
In Putin’s eyes, Europe is weak, lacks organized military power, and fears military conflict.
In conclusion, the American expert says that Putin believes that the world has changed in the last decade in favor of Russia and at the expense of the West.
