logo
episode-header-image
Jul 2020
19m 53s

Putin: a president trapped in power

Financial Times
About this episode
Now in power until 2036 after a recent constitutional change, Vladimir Putin is nevertheless facing a difficult future as the Russian economy stagnates and popular unrest grows. Gideon Rachman and Catherine Belton, author and former FT journalist, discuss how the president and a coterie of close aides took over the wealth of the country on the pretext of reasserting Russia's role on the world stage, but now find themselves without a succession plan. Catherine Belton's book, Putin's People: How the KGB Took Back Russia and Then Took on the West, is published by William Collins.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Nov 4
Impeachments, Iran and the presidency: what’s next after the midterms?
Democrats secured control of both chambers of congress in a stunning victory for the party, and a sharp rejection of President Trump’s Republican Party. Democrats won closely-watched senate races in Michigan and Maine, as well as in conservative strongholds including Texas and Ka ... Show More
27m 2s
Oct 29
Can Netanyahu hold on to power?
Benjamin Netanyahu emerged from this week’s Israeli elections with a slender lead over his closest rival, Gadi Eisenkot, but his far-right coalition fell short of an overall majority. The prime minister’s performance was better than pre-election polls had predicted, and sets up w ... Show More
25m 26s
Oct 22
Are we sleepwalking into a third world war?
A third world war may seem a distant prospect to the general public, but to world leaders, it’s very real. In recent years, In recent years, presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping along with Nato secretary-general Mark Rutte have all alluded to the possibility of a global conflic ... Show More
34m 47s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2024
Putin Forever? Analysing the Russian Elections
<p>With Vladimir Putin claiming yet another victory in Russia's recent national elections, we examine his tenure and what the future has in store.</p> <p>While Putin's election victory was always a certainty, such political exercises involving mass engagement efforts are complex ... Show More
48m 11s
Jul 2020
What does Putin want?
President Vladimir Putin has been in power for 20 years. The Russian people have been voting on a change to the constitution that could keep him in the Kremlin until 2036. While world leaders and opponents struggle to second guess him, some objectives appear to be clear: stabilit ... Show More
24m 2s
May 2022
Putin's Rise to Power
<p>Catherine Belton joins Dan on the podcast to discuss the remarkable story of Vladimir Putin's rise to power. After working from 2007-2013 as the Moscow correspondent for the Financial Times, Catherine's career has offered an exclusive insight into the workings of Putin's Kreml ... Show More
32m 57s
Aug 2024
The Beginning Of The End For Putin?
<p>How do people like Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin really hold onto power? The Pulitzer-prize winning historian and author of 'Autocracy Inc', Anne Applebaum, gives her take on how dictators like the Russian president prop themselves up, and the approaching inflection point in ... Show More
45m 34s
Nov 2022
Falling tsar? Russians eye life after Putin
<p>As President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine continues to falter, Russian elites are now daring to consider the once unthinkable: a life <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2022/10/26/russias-elite-begins-to-ponder-a-putinless-future?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.po ... Show More
23m 17s
Jun 2023
Putin's Hold on Power
A week on from an aborted uprising, Vladimir Putin is still standing. But for how long? The brief rebellion, launched by the leader of the mercenary Wagner Group Yevgeny Prigozhin, marked the greatest challenge to Putin's rule since he came to power, 23 years ago. The mercenary l ... Show More
10m 8s
Mar 2022
The Court of Putin
In the wake of the greatest crisis to hit Europe since the Second World War, former Moscow correspondent Tim Whewell examines the president, people and processes that led to that momentous decision, and others like it. Radical advisers, tame oligarchs, intelligence agencies scare ... Show More
27m 35s