Héloïse Goy with Alexis Patri 9:52 a.m., February 15, 2022

Arte is broadcasting this Tuesday evening "Putin, the return of the bear in the dance", a documentary devoted to the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, which aims to explain the career and political strategies of the autocrat on the point to surpass Joseph Stalin's record longevity in power.

INTERVIEW

Vladimir Putin would be a Russian bear who has been trying for more than twenty years to bring his country out of hibernation.

This is the bias of the documentary 

Putin, the return of the bear in the dance 

that Arte broadcasts on Tuesday evening.

"Any normally constituted journalist has wanted, for some time, to make a documentary on Putin", estimates at the microphone of Europe 1 Frédéric Tonolli, the director of this documentary.

>> Find the media newspapers every morning at 9:10 a.m. on Europe 1 as well as in replay and podcast here

"Putin is still a guy who survived five American presidents and who will beat Stalin's longevity record!", He recalls.

"He's detestable and all you want, but he's a fascinating character. This documentary was born out of a discussion with colleagues: the binary 'bad Russia, Putin the dictator' annoyed me. For me , it was too simple, there was something else behind it."

A documentary that resonates with current events in Russia and Ukraine

The film looks back at Putin's accession to power in 1999. Russia was then a ruined country with little influence on the world diplomatic chessboard.

The various specialists and researchers interviewed explain how, over the years, the man of power has managed to regain the respect and even the fear of the rest of the world. 

This documentary resonates particularly in the current context, at a time when Russia threatens to invade Ukraine.

"Finally, Putin has already won the battle. He played a huge game of poker and he put Russia back at the heart of the big game", analyzes Frédéric Tonolli.

"We talk about Russia all the time and the country has become the scary Russia again, the dangerous Russia, the powerful Russia. So the battle is won. And I hope there will be no war." 

Poutine, the return of the bear in the dance

 is broadcast Tuesday evening on Arte at 10:40 p.m.

It is also available on the arte.tv website.