Dozens have already died amid anti-government protests in Kazakhstan, and the chilling words of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev on Friday indicate that he is prepared to escalate the violence further still: "Use lethal force without warning," he instructed his security forces.

To bolster Kazakh forces, Russian troops have now entered the country to support Tokayev in "liquidating" protests against policies enacted by his authoritarian regime. Some suspect that Russia could use the crisis to strengthen its influence on its former colony.

Until 1991 Kazakhstan was a part of the Soviet Union (USSR), a multinational state dominated by Russia and sometimes referred to as an "empire". Kazakhstan became independent when the USSR collapsed, although it retained close ties with its powerful neighbour. Despite a poor record on civil liberties and human rights, its government has remained stable and achieved some economic success.

Last week, however, protests over fuel prices erupted in the capital and elsewhere. The demonstrations soon broadened into a general political crisis.

Around 4,000 people have been arrested and hundreds injured. Yesterday, local media reported that at least 154 had died. The streets are littered with burned out cars. Russian president Vladimir Putin has sent 2,500 soldiers to crush the protesters, who Tokayev has branded "bandits" and "terrorists".

These troops have entered by invitation rather than invasion, but Putin has previously used instability in former Soviet states to bring them further into Russia's sphere of influence. "Kazakhstan is now under the boot of Putin," says Mukhtar Ablyazov, an exiled Kazakh tycoon. Along with many analysts, he believes that Putin is using crises to pursue ambitions and restore Russia to the status of world power.

While the situation in Kazakhstan is developing, Putin has also ordered 100,000 troops to the border of Ukraine, which some believe Russia is preparing to invade for the second time since 2014. Putin has been accused of conducting a "greyzone war", stopping just short of all-out conflict to weaken neighbouring states.

Nostalgia for the Soviet Union is rife in Russia, with Joseph Stalin regularly topping polls of the greatest historical figures. Putin himself famously called the fall of the Soviet Union history's "greatest political catastrophe".

However, some commentators say that Putin's militarism may be a sign of weakness as well as strength. If Kazakhstan's seemingly stable authoritarian government can be threatened by protests, then his own grip on power may be less firm than it seems. Feeding national pride and imperialism is one way to boost popularity at home.

If Putin is intent on re-establishing a Russian empire, it could bring him into conflict with the West. Ukraine in particular is becoming a major flashpoint. Talks between Russian and US diplomats over de-escalating tensions there are set to begin today, but experts are sceptical about the possibility of a treaty.

Yes: Putin's foreign interventions show that he is a master political strategist who is bent on restoring Russia to its former glory.

No: There is no great master plan. Putin's military aggression is just posturing for popularity, tapping into nostalgia for a time when Russia was a global superpower.

Or...? Even if Putin's real goal is just to stay in power, that may still lead him to expansionist wars. Leaders are driven to war by domestic weakness just as often as military confidence and ambition.