One of Britain’s most influential newspapers has named Russian President Vladimir Putin ‘Man of the Year.’ The Times awarded the title because Putin "succeeded in one of his most enduring ambitions: to bring Moscow back to the international high table."
According to the newspaper, it was the Syrian insurgency that “propelled the president back into the front ranks of effective world statesmen,” when he managed to steer the West away from military intervention. He then used the escalating conflict to boost Russia's clout on the international stage.
“The narrow, but achievable and worthy aim of taking apart President Assad’s chemical arsenal was a face-saver for the West. And it established Mr Putin as a Middle East player once again; for Arab leaders and the Iranians he was suddenly the man who knew how to head off Western-led regime change,” The Times said.
Article: http://rt.com/news/putin-times...
