Right now, as I sit at my keyboard to write this piece, under the leadership and direction of one man, President Vladimir Putin, the Russian Federation’s brutal assault on Ukraine continues. Putin’s military is leveling the homes of innocent people who have done nothing to provoke such actions. In a relentless campaign, the Russian armed forces continue to target hospitals, schools and homes with cluster bombs, and continue to hold out the threat of using chemical biological, and even nuclear weapons over the heads of Ukrainians. Under Putin, Russian troops are blocking the basic necessities of food, water, and humanitarian aid from getting through to the war-ravaged people of Ukraine who have a desperate need.

The whole world now knows that Russian armed forces have engaged in executing untold numbers of innocent Ukrainian civilians as they continue to zero-in on civilians; innocent women, children and elderly. Truth be told, the official statements from the Kremlin that have recently spoken of Russian forces withdrawing and pulling back is not so much a retreat, but much more of a re-grouping and re-positioning tactic. Make no mistake about it, in the eastern and southern regions of Ukraine, the worst is yet to come.

So as the world bears witness to the atrocities and barbarism that is playing out all across Ukraine, the question that looms large in the collective mind of the world is, who is this pale diminutive man in the Kremlin with reptilian eyes and Botox-puffed cheeks who walks with a stiff and clipped gate. Who is this man who looks at others through eyes that are devoid of even a vague trace of warmth and humanity for anyone other than himself? Who is this man who has so ruthlessly mastered the art of total power? Who is the man behind the public mask? Looking at him, and witnessing the brutal attack, and extraordinary level of aggression and genocide that that he has mounted against the friendly and non-threating neighboring nation of Ukraine, it is crystal clear that, in his mind, his single and overriding goal is one of building a world order where a new Soviet Empire reigns supreme.

It would seem obvious to anyone with a pulse that the ultimate goal of this former KGB agent who has, in effect, made himself a Czar, is one of destroying not only Ukraine, but of obliterating Europe while dividing NATO in the quest to resurrect what he sees as the glory days of the long-dead Soviet Empire. Above all else, it appears that what he covets most is to marginalize the United States and the democracies of the European Union.

Born in 1952, the ambitious, pragmatic and ruthless Putin’s view of the world was surely shaped by his time as a KGB spy in the old Soviet system. Today he is often compared to Adolf Hitler, Stalin and Saddam Hussein. Those infamous leaders all experienced very difficult and traumatic childhoods that were set against a backdrop of grinding poverty, war and disadvantage. From the ashes of such troubled upbringing’s Hitler, Stalin and Saddam became dictators who grew into men with marked antisocial behavior and pronounced narcissism. In his youth, Putin reportedly roamed the city streets of St. Petersburg (then called Leningrad) committing petty crimes and acts of violence. I’m certainly no psychiatrist, however, even as a layperson, there definitely appears to be a disturbing pattern that sets the stage for certain types of personalities to grow up to become over achievers with a constant need for attention and praise, and for acting as bullies. The fact that Putin holds a black belt in judo, is highly competitive, and can’t stand to lose in any arena is quite telling. To borrow the title of an old James Bond movie, for people like Vladimir Putin, “The world is not enough.”

He started his political career as the mayor of St. Petersburg and rose through the ranks during the chaos of the disintegration and collapse of the Soviet Union to become president in the year 2000. He is the longest surviving Russian leader since Soviet dictator, Joseph Stalin who died in 1953. Like Stalin, Putin is a stone-faced chameleon who controls every facet of the Russian government with a dictatorial iron hand while keeping his personal life totally private. With Putin pulling all the strings, the Duma (The Russian Parliament) recently passed a constitutional reform bill that will give him the authority to stay in power well beyond the end of his current fourth term. This translates to giving Putin the title of “President for Life.” What is of much greater concern is that provides him with a pathway to realize is dream of resurrecting the old Soviet Union, and bringing back the days when Russian was a power on the world stage.

He has repeatedly gone on the public record characterizing the collapse of the old USSR as, “the biggest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century.” This statement speaks volumes in terms of what might be spinning around in his dark mind. By most accounts, he is one of the wealthiest men in the world, however, the best financial investigators have been stymied in trying to get a handle on how much he is actually worth, and where his vast fortune is hidden.

When all is said and done, today, after more than 20 years on the world stage, people from across the globe still know little or nothing about who Vladimir Putin really is behind his public mask. In the face of being called a war criminal, a saddest and a psychopath, he still remains the ultimate enigma; for all intents and purposes, he’s a mystery within a mystery. However, one thing is quite clear. Through his persona of coldblooded rock solid confidence, and his over-the-top sense of hubris and sense of grandness, he has been successful in feeding his insatiable appetite for power and all of his personal wants, needs and desires.

When I think of this man’s cruel and bloody rise to power, and what he is now doing to the people of Ukraine who certainly don’t deserve what is happening to them and their country as they continue to fight valiantly to hold on to their nation and their freedom, I’m struck by a single and overriding thought. Meeting Vladimir Putin would surely be like shaking hands with darkness.

Paul Collins is a freelance writer from Southborough, Massachusetts.