<blockquote>‘..Vladimir Putin, the effective, popular, and increasingly undemocratic president since 2000 .. On substance, meaty policy research and white papers are most recommended for the. information-craving Putin. The format should speak to new data and to options that lend themselves to evaluation and prioritization, without asking for the firm action commitments he is loath to give without drawn-out prior consideration. Putin the private decision maker cannot be expected to enter into public exchanges with others on information interpretation or a final course of action. He may, all the same, be a fine sounding board relative to Russian intentions—although he will likely want to revisit the information stage to verify before crystallizing his goals or strategy. When establishing goals, he may be ready to get into a searching exchange of ideas.'
- Brenda Connors (April, 2011)</blockquote>
Context<blockquote>
'..[Putin] has created a military-industrial-political-criminal complex..''..the consequences of not assisting Ukraine will be far worse than any of those from doing so.'</blockquote>