Krastev: Russia's nineteenth century clothes

For the past week at openDemocracy we have focused our war coverage on history, on the particular, on reminding our readers that South Ossetia and Abkhazia are not abstractions, but places with history, populated by people with claims and memories. Now, in moving to the bigger canvas, we do not jump into NATO, the USA and geo-politics. Instead, we stay firmly focused on the actors and the reality. In this brlliant piece, Ivan Krastev helps us to understand what Russia is doing, and why it is snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. Russia must, for its and our good, rediscover soft power.