Stone, and all the Putinversteher I have encountered have one valid point: that is that it is incorrect and misleading to discuss Putin in Cold War Terms.

This is no longer a worldwide struggle between competing ideologies, this is purely a manifestation of Russian nationalism and imperialism. It is generally limited to the former Russian Empire (or the ex-USSR) and the states immediately bordering on it (which is a sizable chunk of the world in itself).