It is not hard to see Putin as an authoritarian. In most ways he is, based on Western standards. But, given Russia's current development trajectory, he probably has to be…. Either the Kremlin continues its very hard-handed approach to restructuring the economy or Russia risks becoming in effect a Burkina Faso with nuclear weapons.

Keywords:
Vladimir, Putin, Russia, United States, oligarchs, Yukos, oil, KremPEC, OPEC, Rosneft
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