As western leaders struggle to respond to the stranglehold Russia has put on Crimea, it is beginning to dawn on them that for Vladimir Putin, this fight started a long time ago.
Within a week, Russia’s president has had his men bring the peninsula on the Black Sea under his control, called the future of the Ukrainian state into question and forced governments from Warsaw to Washington into crisis mode.
To many in the west, Mr Putin’s actions are those of an authoritarian leader dangerously out of control. Yet back home approval ratings are rising for a man Russians see as having defended the national interest and boosted their living standards.
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