This book aims to provide an important insight into the essence of Putinism and the political system he has established in Russia over the past decade. Van Herpen compares in detail the many and often surprising parallels that exist between Vladimir Putin's regime in Russia and that of Weimar Germany and Mussolini's Italy indicating the presence of strong Fascist elements in the contemporary Russian Political system. However, this is tempered with elements of Bonapartism from Napoleon III's France and the populism of Italian politics under Berlusconi creating a hybrid system which has been termed 'Fascism-Lite' with a softer face than Mussolinian Fascism but still containing a hard core of ultra-nationalism, militarism and neo-imperialism. The author not only looks at Putin's regime in retrospect but also offers an insight into the future of the Russian political system as Russia's strong man begins his third term in office.

"The present crisis is felt more acutely than previous crisis situations," observes Dutch security expert Marcel van Herpen, largely because human beings are now projecting responsibility into history on all fronts––past and future, in addition to the present. Learning from the past has become an imperative to safeguard the well-being of future generations by never repeating negative experiences, so much so that it demands an explanation of culpability into the past that burdens the present under a weight that does not properly belong to actors who did not commit the deeds of the past and have yet to decide their futures. In a time of crisis we face the accusations of history, however distant, and are subjected to the sound of its echoing ahead of us. But, Van Herpen asks, to what exactly (or to what extent) should we listen as we strive to respond to the challenges of present day? "Is it true that history is a teacher for our lives? And has it ever been? In crisis periods this question becomes more urgent: old certainties disappear and––independently from our wishes––a new, unknown world is emerging, which seems to be at odds with our established ways of thinking and our existing value patterns." Van Herpen scrutinizes modern European history and the post-modern man and offers the reader a compelling account of human freedom in politics, morality, and the ways in which history will or will not ever guide us into the future. He proves himself to be a very capable political scientist and sociologist, but more importantly he has now pronounced himself to be an optimistic (yet sober) observer of both human beings and history, willing to confront the present generation with possible future outcomes of contemporary crises.

In this original analysis of contemporary Russia, the author shows how Putin's regime is a completely new, right-wing political model that combines features of Mussolini's Italy with the 19th Century Bonapartism of Napoleon III and 21st Century Populism of Berlusconi. An essential read.