Putin. A Mullahs´ allied.

This is typical Russian historical paranoia. The Russians (whether czars, communists, or just tools like Putin) have always wanted to dominate their neighbors completely to meet their own warped view of national security. It's what passes for rational in the Russian mind. Putin is such a piece of garbage, a KGB hack by background. Trying to resurrect the glory days of the old USSR isn't doable, but, I guess if you have no other viable vision of a civil society in Russia that's all that you've got. The jerk is bluffing.

Paranoia has always sold well with the xenophobic Russians. It's always someone else's fault. Russia isn't going anywhere but down the tubes - the average males life expectancy is the same as Bangladesh, more abortions than live births and the same old vodka problem. Putin would blow away in an instant if the EU had the brains to stop their anti-America triangulation. They would rather have Putin freeze their asses off than admit that they can't contain him alone. Putin, in an interview at his country residence outside Moscow, said he considers U.S. plans to build an eastern European anti-missile site to shoot down Iranian missiles a provocation aimed at Russia. The only way to interpret this bluster is to conclude that Putin is now fully allied with the Mullahs.