In an interview for the upcoming FRONTLINE documentary “Putin’s Road to War,” columnist Eugene Robinson shares his analysis of Vladimir Putin’s ambitions.

"I think he wants to be a great historical figure for Russia," he tells FRONTLINE. "I think he wants to be in the line of Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Catherine the Great, Lenin, Stalin. I think it’s Putin the Great is what he wants to be."

Eugene Robinson is a columnist and an associate editor for The Washington Post, where he writes on politics and culture.

The following interview was conducted by FRONTLINE’s Mike Wiser on March 3, 2022. It has been edited for clarity and length.

“Putin’s Road to War” premieres March 15, 2022. Watch the trailer now: https://youtu.be/EaUefbpmV08

This interview is being published as part of FRONTLINE’s Transparency Project, an effort to open up the source material behind our documentaries. Explore the transcript of this interview, and others, on the FRONTLINE website: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/about-frontlines-transparency-project/

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