In the 1990s, when Russia was seen as an exotic sideshow rather than a geopolitical menace, Mark Galeotti was one of a handful of western experts to focus on the dark side of the post-Soviet world. First at Keele University, then at New York University, he taught unusual postgraduate courses in espionage and organised crime (often the same thing, cynics would say). Those years of neglect, naivety and complacency are over. Interest in Russia has mushroomed and Galeotti, now at the Royal United Services Institute in London, is much consulted by businesses and governments. In fewer than 150 pithy pages, Galeotti sketches a bleak, but convincing picture of the man in the Kremlin and the political system that he dominates.

Source: The Times February 08, 2019 12:56 UTC