Putin's Playbook

Russia's Secret Plan to Defeat America

by Rebekah Koffler

Number of pages: 432

BBB Library: Booklets

ISBN: 978-1684510030

About the Author

Rebekah Koffler is a Russian-born U.S. intelligence expert. Working with the Defense Intelligence Agency and the Central Intelligence Agency's National Clandestine Service, she has led "red" teams during wargames and briefed the Pentagon, the White House, and NATO on Russian affairs. U.S. military commanders have called her a "national asset," and she received the National Intelligence Professional Award. Now an independent consultant, she lives near Washington, D.C., with her husband, the journalist Keith Koffler, and their children.

Editorial Review

Get it straight– America is at war today. The Kremlin’s meddling in the election of 2016 is only the first page in a master plan to unbalance America or defeat it through military means if necessary. Russia wants an America that is weakened by political dysfunction, divided by social tension, struggling economically, and estranged from its allies. A distracted America will be far more unlikely to get in the way of Putin’s ambitions. To accomplish this goal, Russia will use its tools of influencing campaigns, economic pressure, cyber operations, and measurement of military force.

Book Reviews

“Putin’s Playbook—a hard-hitting, very frank inspection of the man and his Russia. Rebekah Koffler brings insight that only a Russian-born analyst could. A page-turner dripping with facts and conclusions that gives us clarity few have attained; a must-read for those who want to understand [Russia and President Putin]….”

“Putin’s Playbook is an intriguing and informative read for those interested in peeking into the Kremlin’s motivations and wartime strategies. Koffler deliberately warns not to underestimate Russians’ deep-rooted anger over our nation’s moral assertiveness and how Putin’s animosity can escalate into war. A frightening, eye-opening prediction for U.S.-Russian relations, Putin’s Playbook will make readers see the urgency of developing a counterstrategy to the brilliance of Putin’s playbook.”

“When the Soviet Union suddenly ceased to exist in 1991, a mortal threat to America appeared to disappear. What didn’t disappear was the ‘counterintelligence state’ that the Bolsheviks created in 1917. In the face of a feckless thirty-year American post-Soviet policy, the hard men of the KGB, successors to the totalitarian secret police, simply expropriated the wealth and remaining power of Russia. Predictably, Putin’s Russia created an American enemy where there was none. With a clear head and the sharp eye of a senior intelligence analyst, Rebekah Koffler details the ominous threat we now face.”

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Wisdom to Share

The Kremlin’s meddling in the election of 2016 is only the first page in a master plan to unbalance America, or defeat it through military means if necessary.

Russia wants an America that is weakened by political dysfunction, divided by social tension, struggling economically, and estranged from its allies.

In March 2018, Putin announced in his annual State of the Nation address that Russia had brandnew next-generation nuclear weapons aimed at the United States, which he claimed were immune to being intercepted.

Despite the media’s portrayal of Trump being soft on Russia, the U.S’s stance has toughened towards Russia, expelling Russian “diplomats”, approving lethal weapons being sent to Ukraine, and adopting defensive policies.

Russia still considers the area that was once known as the Soviet Union as part of their exclusive sphere of influence– critical to their security, and therefore off-limits to the West.

The fact that Washington freely allows these Baltic states to join NATO is considered a direct and existential threat to Russia, making them more insecure and unpredictable.

Cold War thinking has influenced Moscow into holding Washington responsible for the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and into thinking that America aims to one day overthrow Putin’s regime.

Russians have a strong connection to their history, which is scarred over by invasions, wars, and revolutions that devastated the economy and claimed the lives of millions.

America has not experienced a major conflict on its territory for more than a century and a half. Most Americans believe that wars happen somewhere else.

Russians believe that only a strong leader can protect them. This is why despite his authoritarian leanings, Putin still earns high approval ratings.