(FINANCIAL TIMES) - For Mr Vladimir Putin's extraordinary meeting with his top security officials on Monday, he chose the Kremlin's ornate Hall of the Order of St Catherine. Designed by the czars to show off the glories of Russia's empire, the setting perfectly underscored how much the President has come to resemble his autocratic forebears of old.
In a made-for-TV spectacle, Mr Putin asked his subordinates one after the other to make the case for recognising two separatist-held territories in eastern Ukraine - a move that the West fears could mark the start of a war between Moscow and Kyiv, with as many as 190,000 Russian troops massed around Ukraine's borders.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Dive deeper at $0.99/month
Want more exclusives, sharp insights into what's happening at home and abroad? Subscribe to stay informed.
ST One Digital Package - Monthly
$9.90 $0.99/month
No contract
$0.99/month for the first 3 months, $9.90/month thereafter. T&Cs apply.
Unlock these benefits
All subscriber-only content on ST app and straitstimes.com
Easy access any time via ST app on 1 mobile device
2-week e-paper archive so you never miss out on any topic that matters to you