How Did We Get Putin So Wrong?

Russia has known no other leader in the 21st century than Vladimir Putin. Throughout his nearly quarter-century in power, few global leaders have been so closely scrutinized. U.S. and allied intelligence agencies have observed and analyzed him more closely than perhaps any other single individual.

So how come we keep getting him and the nature of the threat he poses so wrong?

At first the mistakes we made about Putin could be written off to inexperience. In 2001, just a year after Putin had assumed power, George W. Bush famously said he was able to look Putin in the eye and “get a sense of his soul.” As a result of this spiritual journey, the American president concluded that the Russian leader was “very straightforward and trustworthy.”

Read more at The Daily Beast.