Putin’s use of history as propaganda also stretches into how he sees Stalin and the Second World War. Putin has a nostalgic longing to return to the power possessed by the former Soviet Union – in 2005 he said that the breakup of the Soviet empire was “the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the century”. As a proud, obsessive Russian nationalist, the idea of a democratic Ukraine in the EU and NATO is utterly anathema to him. Like many Russians, Putin sees Ukraine as a “little brother” with close historic ties to Moscow. Only last year, for instance, he took time away from oppressing his own people to write five thousand words of propaganda – dressed up as history – arguing that Ukraine essentially belongs to Russia. Putin claims to be a keen student of Stalin, the Second World War and the former Soviet Union. And you can’t understand why Russia invaded Ukraine without knowing of Putin’s obsession with history. But, surprisingly, he also fancies himself as something else – a historian. He’s a ruthless dictator, he’s a thief who steals from his own people, and as recent events have demonstrated, he’s a war criminal.

Vladimir putin red button