Michael Thumann has been reporting from Eastern Europe for the leading German intellectual weekly Die Zeit for more than 30 years. His book chronicles Russia's descent into an increasingly totalitarian dictatorship and the path leading to the escalation of Putin's imperialist war in 2022. The dictator and his entourage want to take revenge for the democratic opening after 1991 and supposed humiliation by the West. Putin's rule is becoming more radical. It is the most threatening regime in the world.

Michael Thumann is foreign affairs correspondent for Die Zeit and lives in Moscow and Berlin. He already came to know Russia during his student days, at Moscow State University. He has been reporting for Die Zeit from Eastern Europe and the Middle East since the 1990s. He is author of numerous articles, podcasts, and best-selling books about Russia as a multinational state and Putin's new nationalism.