Putin Falters Using Yeltsin's Playbook
Saint Joseph's UniversityToday marks the 20th anniversary of the first (contemporary) Russian invasion of Chechnya. While made by the Yeltsin administration, that decision has had an enormous impact on current Russian identity and now President Vladimir Putin's power. Moreover, this strategy of two decades ago has a familiar ring: promote popular approval during hard times by turning to violence against some undesirable “other” — Chechen terrorists in 1994 and Ukrainian fascists today.