Joseph S. Nye, the Harvard professor who coined the phrase “soft power,” appeared on Radio 4 last night and in just 30 seconds delivered the most complete, cogent analysis of Putin’s Russia we’ve heard this year. The context, before you listen to the clip, is that Europe currently feels as if it’s in thrall to Russia: Putin’s forces are meddling in Ukraine; he’s threatening to cut off gas supplies to the West; and the other European countries have imposed sanctions on Russia in an attempt to get Putin to back off. Even the routine appearance of Russian warships in the …read more
Source: Business Insider