Stephen Cohen went on The John Batchelor Show yesterday evening to discuss Vladimir Putin’s recent speech on the state of Russia, the equivalent of the State of the Union address in the United States, which is both an opportunity to boast about the achievements of the past year and to outline a program for the next. “What we’re witnessing is the transformation of Vladimir Putin as leader of Russia,” Cohen said. He goes on to explain how Putin’s goals have changed since he first came to power, and his recent pivot from the West to the East.

“The world’s being transformed, John,” Cohen said. “It’s being transformed in a way that ten years we will look back and say we were talking about it when it was happening.”

—Jessica McKenzie