That is how former secretary of defense, Robert Gates writing in the Wall Street Journal, describes what drives Vladimir Putin’s actions in the Ukraine, the Baltics, and any other region where he considers Russians interests and international reputation at stake. He is motivated by a massive grievance, which, one suspects, is further stimulated when his nation is dismissed as a “regional power,” as the president did yesterday.  

Putin wants Russia’s former power (and what he views as its glory) back and operates from: