History Professor and Kremlin Media Expert on Russia’s Victory Day Celebrations: ‘Putin Likens Ukraine Fight to World War II’

With the conflict in Ukraine escalating by the day, worldwide media are turning to Cynthia Hooper, associate professor of history and director of Russian and Eastern European Studies at the College of the Holy Cross, for her expert insight.

Most recently, Hooper, a historian of Russia specializing in Kremlin media strategy, discussed President Vladimir Putin's Victory Day speech with Bloomberg's Tom Keene.

Watching Russia's celebrations from Germany, Professor Hooper was struck by Putin's message to the Russian troops likening the fight in Ukraine  to World War II.

"Putin actually drew an implicit comparison between the Nazi regime under the Third Reich and their ideology of racial superiority, and the United States after 1991, with what Putin claimed was its ideology of political and economic exceptionality," said Hooper.

To watch the segment, go to Bloomberg.com.