Let’s get the obvious one out of the way. No tyrant who invades their neighbors, especially European ones, should express surprise when people compare them to Nazi Fürher Adolf Hitler. Hitler, of course, conquered Germany first, per Britannica, then sent his Wehrmacht storming all over Europe, triggering the Second World War. He believed Germany had a right to rule the continent how it saw fit.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin hasn’t taken as much territory, but he also believes Russia has a right to dominate its neighbors and is certainly doing a lot more invading than anyone else these days. In 2008 he seized Georgia, in the Caucasus. Then he went after Ukraine, swallowing up Crimea in the Black Sea and financing Russian separatists in Donbas, following Ukraine’s pro-Western demonstrations in 2014, according to Foreign Policy. On February 24, 2022, his Russian army began a full-fledged invasion of Ukraine, seeking to topple its government. It’s unlikely this conflict will result in WWII-scale genocides. But Putin’s land grabs still constitute the first major interstate military conflict in Europe since the ’40s.
Both dictators also use propaganda and psychological warfare to disrupt their foes, consolidate power at home, and soften up foreign populations for invasion. In this arena, Putin clearly outclasses Hitler, simply because he has access to far more advanced technology. Just imagine what Adolf would’ve done to get his hands on Russia’s infamous troll farms, Deepfake technology, and social media bots (per NBC).
