Just a couple of months ago it was fashionable to laud Vladimir Putin for his strategic genius. American rightwingers contrasted his sure-footedness with their own president’s alleged weakness. In a column entitled “Obama vs Putin, The Mismatch”, Charles Krauthammer argued: “Under this president, Russia has run rings around America.” Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York, praised Mr Putin’s decisiveness and cooed: “That’s what you call a leader.” Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence party, said Mr Putin was the world leader he most admired.
就在几个月前，称赞弗拉基米尔•普京(Vladimir Putin)的战略天才还是件时髦事。美国右翼人士将他的稳健与美国总统所谓的软弱作对比。在题为《奥巴马vs普京，实力悬殊》的专栏文章中，查尔斯•克劳特哈默(Charles Krauthammer)指出：“在普京任下，俄罗斯远胜美国。”纽约前市长鲁迪•朱利安尼(Rudy Giuliani)称赞普京的果断，嘀咕道：“这才称得上领袖。”英国独立党(UKIP)党魁奈杰尔•法拉奇(Nigel Farage)称普京是他最仰慕的世界领导人。