Recalling Putin Two Decades Ago

A veteran foreign correspondent revisits an old reel of his 2003 TV interview

What does an old video reveal about an old spy and future authoritarian leader?

I recently reviewed recordings of an interview I had with Russian President Vladimir Putin, at the Kremlin on October 13, 2003.

I’d been approached by Putin’s people in Moscow to arrange an unusual interview:  In his first term as President, Putin wanted to reach out to televi…