Obama — who scoffed at threat posed by Russia during 2012 campaign — now says 'danger was always there' with Putin

Even though he once dismissed the threat posed by Moscow during the 2012 presidential campaign, former President Barack Obama said that danger was always there with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Putin has always been ruthless against his own people. Obama said in an exclusive interview that he has always been wrapped up in a twisted sense of grievance and ethnic nationalism.

I think that part of Putin has always been there. The invasion of Ukraine has shown him being reckless in a way that you might not have expected, but the danger was always there.

During his two terms as commander-in-chief, Obama had to deal with the same Russian leader as Putin now.

The answer Obama gave was different than the one he gave during the final presidential debate.

A few months ago, when you were asked what the biggest threat to America was, you said Russia. Not al-Qaeda. The Cold War has been over for 20 years, and the 1980s are now asking for their foreign policy back.

Putin invaded and annexed the peninsula of Crimea with the help of Moscow-backed rebels while Obama was president.

During the Today interview, Roker asked Obama if he could have done something differently.

The situations in each of these circumstances are different, but I think that what we are seeing consistently is a reminder of why it is important for us to not take our own democracy for granted.