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{{Infobox Prime Minister
|name = Vladimir Putin<br><small>Влади́мир Пу́тин<small>
|image = Vladimir Putin official portrait.jpg
|imagesize = 200px
|office = [[Prime Minister of Russia]]
|deputy = [[Viktor Zubkov]]<br>[[Igor Shuvalov]]
|president = [[Dmitry Medvedev]]
|term_start = 8 May 2008
|term_end =
|predecessor = [[Viktor Zubkov]]
|successor =
|president2 = [[Boris Yeltsin]]
|term_start2 = 9 August 1999
|term_end2 = 7 May 2000
|predecessor2 = [[Sergei Stepashin]]
|successor2 = [[Mikhail Kasyanov]]
|order3 = [[President of Russia]]
|primeminister3 = [[Mikhail Kasyanov]]<br>[[Viktor Khristenko]] <small>(Acting)</small><br>[[Mikhail Fradkov]]<br>[[Viktor Zubkov]]
|term_start3 = 7 May 2000
|term_end3 = 7 May 2008<br><small>[[Acting President of the Russian Federation|Acting]]: 31 December 1999 – 7 May 2000<small>
|predecessor3 = [[Boris Yeltsin]]
|successor3 = [[Dmitry Medvedev]]
|order4 = [[United Russia|Chairman of United Russia]]
|term_start4 = 7 May 2008
|predecessor4 = [[Boris Gryzlov]]
|order5 = Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the [[Union State]]
|term_start5 = 27 May 2008
|term_end5 =
|predecessor5 = Position established
|successor5 =
|birth_date = {{bda|1952|10|7|df=y}}
|birth_place = [[Saint Petersburg|Leningrad]], [[Soviet Union]] <small>(now [[Russia]])</small>
|alma_mater = [[Saint Petersburg State University|Leningrad State University]]
|spouse = [[Lyudmila Putina]]
|children = Mariya<br>Yekaterina
|religion = [[Russian Orthodox Church|Russian Orthodox]]
|party = [[United Russia]] <small>(2008–present)</small><ref>{{cite news | title = Putin agrees to head ruling United Russia party | publisher = [[RIA Novosti]] | location = [[Moscow]] | date = 15 April 2008 | url = http://en.rian.ru/world/20080415/105112727.html | accessdate = 2008-12-29 }}</ref>
|otherparty = [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]] (before 1991)<br>[[Independent (politician)|Independent ]] (1991–2008)<br>
|signature = Putin signature.svg
}}
'''Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin''' ({{lang-ru|Влади́мир Влади́мирович Пу́тин}}, {{IPA-ru|vlɐˈdʲimʲɪr vlɐˈdʲimʲɪrəvʲɪtɕ ˈputʲɪn|pron|ru-Putin.ogg}}; born 7 October 1952 in [[Leningrad]], [[Soviet Union|USSR]]; now [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Russia]]) was the second [[President of Russia]] and is the current [[Prime Minister of Russia]] as well as chairman of [[United Russia]] and [[Chairman of the Council of Ministers]] of the [[Union of Russia and Belarus]]. He became [[Acting President of the Russian Federation|acting President]] on 31 December 1999, when president [[Boris Yeltsin]] resigned in a surprising move, and then Putin won the [[Russian presidential election, 2000|2000 presidential election]]. In 2004, he was [[Russian presidential election, 2004|re-elected]] for a second term lasting until 7 May 2008.

Due to constitutionally mandated term limits, Putin was ineligible to run for a third consecutive Presidential term. After the victory of his successor, [[Dmitry Medvedev]], in the [[Russian presidential election, 2008|2008 presidential elections]], he was then nominated by the latter to be Russia's [[Prime Minister of Russia|Prime Minister]]; Putin took the post on 8 May 2008.

Throughout his presidential terms and into his second term as Prime Minister, Putin has enjoyed high approval ratings amongst the Russian public. He is credited with bringing political stability and re-establishing the rule of law.<ref name="derpräsident">{{cite book|last=Krone-Schmalz|first=Gabriele|title=Was passiert in Russland?|publisher=F.A. Herbig|location=München|date=2008|edition=4|chapter=Der Präsident|isbn=9783776625257|language=German}}</ref> During his eight years in office, on the back of [[Yeltsin]]-era structural reforms, steadily rising [[Price of petroleum|oil price]] and cheap credit from western banks,<ref>{{ru icon}} {{cite news | last = Polukin | first = Alexey | title = К нефти легко примазаться | publisher = [[Novaya Gazeta]] | date = 10 January 2008 | url = http://www.novayagazeta.ru/data/2008/01/10.html | accessdate = 2008-12-29 }}</ref><ref name="Troublepipe">{{cite news |title=Trouble in the pipeline |publisher=[[The Economist]] |date=8 May 2008 |url=http://www.economist.com/business/PrinterFriendly.cfm?story_id=11332313 |accessdate=2008-11-26}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The flight from the rouble |publisher=[[The Economist]] |date=20 November 2008 |url=http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12641926 |accessdate=2008-11-26}}</ref> Russia's economy bounced back from crisis, seeing [[GDP]] increase sixfold (72% in [[Purchasing power parity|PPP]]),<ref name="nbc"/><ref>[http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2008/01/weodata/weorept.aspx?pr.x=52&pr.y=13&sy=1992&ey=2007&scsm=1&ssd=1&sort=country&ds=.&br=1&c=922&s=NGDPD%2CPPPGDP&grp=0&a= GDP of Russia from 1992 to 2007] [[International Monetary Fund]] Retrieved on 12 May 2008</ref> poverty cut more than half<ref name=kommersantstats>[http://www.kommersant.com/page.asp?id=804651 Putin’s Eight Years] [[Kommersant]] Retrieved on 4 May 2008</ref><ref name="stats"/><ref name="russiaprofile"/> and average monthly salaries increase from $80 to $640, or by 150% in [[Real GDP#Types of GDP and GDP growth|real]] rates.<ref name="nbc"/><ref>[http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/09/content_7582876.htm Putin visions new development plans for Russia] [[China Economic Information Service]] Retrieved on 8 May 2008</ref> Analysts have described Putin's economic reforms as impressive.<ref name="progress"/><ref name="rutland">{{cite book|last=Rutland|first=Peter|title=Developments in Russian Politics|editor=White, Gitelman, Sakwa|publisher=Duke University Press|date=2005|volume=6|chapter=Putin's Economic Record|isbn=0822335220}}</ref> During his presidency, Putin passed into law a series of fundamental reforms, including a flat income tax of 13 percent, a reduced profits tax, and new land and legal codes.<ref name="sharlet">{{cite book|last=Sharlet|first=Robert|title=Developments in Russian Politics|editor=White, Gitelman, Sakwa|publisher=Duke University Press|date=2005|volume=6|chapter=In Search of the Rule of Law|isbn=0822335220}}</ref><ref name="progress">[http://www.americanprogress.org/issues/2004/06/b99061.html The Putin Paradox]</ref> Putin's prudent economic policies have received praise from Western economists.<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/10/18/business/ruble.php Russia struggles with galloping inflation]</ref> At the same time, his conduct in office has been questioned by domestic political opposition, foreign governments and human rights organizations for leading the [[Second Chechen War]], for his record on internal human rights and freedoms, and for his alleged bullying of the former [[Republics of the Soviet Union|Soviet Republics]]. A new [[Political groups during Vladimir Putin's presidency|group of business magnate]]s controlling significant swathes of Russia's economy - such as [[Gennady Timchenko]], [[Vladimir Yakunin]], [[Yuriy Kovalchuk]], [[Sergey Chemezov]], all with close personal ties to Putin - emerged according to media reports.<ref>[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ffb58e54-2216-11dd-a50a-000077b07658.html Friends in high places?] By Catherine Belton and Neil Buckley, [[Financial Times]], May 15 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/18/business/worldbusiness/18kgb.html?_r=1&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&oref=slogin Former Russian Spies Are Now Prominent in Business] by Andrew Kramer [[New York Times]] December 18, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.iie.com/publications/opeds/oped.cfm?ResearchID=857 Russia's New Oligarchy: For Putin and Friends, a Gusher of Questionable Deals] by [[Anders Aslund]] December 12, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://newsru.com/finance/01nov2007/gunvor.html Миллиардер Тимченко, «друг Путина», стал одним из крупнейших в мире продавцов нефти.] [[NEWSru.com]] Nov 1, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://newsru.com/russia/17dec2007/putin40.html#2 Путин остается премьером, чтобы сохранить контроль над бизнес-империей.] NEWSru.com Dec 17, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://allcred.ru/2007/12/16/mn222.html За время президентства Путин «заработал» 40 миллиардов долларов?]</ref><ref>[http://newsru.com/russia/13may2008/megaputin.html Путин под занавес президентства заключил мегасделки по раздаче госактивов "близким людям"] [[NEWSru.com]] Mat 13, 2008.</ref>

==Early life==
[[File:Vladimir Putin with his mother.jpg|left|thumb|Putin with his mother, Maria Ivanovna, in July 1958]]

Putin was born on 7 October 1952 in [[Leningrad]],<ref>[http://premier.gov.ru/biography/ Biography at the Russia's Prime Minister web site], in Russian</ref> to parents Vladimir Spiridonovich Putin (1911{{ndash}}1999) and Maria Ivanovna Shelomova (1911{{ndash}}1998). His mother was a factory worker, and his father was a [[Conscription|conscript]] in the [[Soviet Navy]], where he served in the [[submarine]] fleet in the early 1930s,<ref name="first-person">{{cite book|title=First Person|coauthors=Vladimir Putin, Nataliya Gevorkyan, Natalya Timakova, Andrei Kolesnikov|others=trans. Catherine A. Fitzpatrick|year=2000|publisher=[[PublicAffairs]]|pages=208|isbn=9781586480189}}</ref> subsequently serving with the [[NKVD]] in a sabotage group during [[World War II|World War&nbsp;II]].<ref>An excerpt from the book in [http://web.archive.org/web/200109/www.nytimes.com/books/00/05/14/reviews/000514.14gwertzt.html The K.G.B. Candidate: Three Moscow journalists talk to Russia's new president], by Bernard Gwertzman, May 14, 2000, [[The New York Times]].</ref> Two elder brothers were born in the mid{{ndash}}1930s; one died within a few months of birth; the second succumbed to [[diphtheria]] during the [[siege of Leningrad]]. His paternal grandfather, Spiridon Ivanovich Putin (1879{{ndash}}1965) was employed at [[Vladimir Lenin]]'s [[dacha]] (Gorki) as a cook, and after Lenin's death in 1924, he continued to work for Lenin's wife, [[Nadezhda Krupskaya]]. He would later cook for [[Joseph Stalin]] when the Soviet leader visited one of his dachas in the [[Moscow]] region. Spiridon later was employed at a dacha belonging to the Moscow City Committee of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]], at which the young Putin would visit him.<ref name="sakwa">{{ref label|Sakwa2008|Sakwa (2008)|a}}, p2
</ref>

[[File:Vladimir Putin as a child.jpg|right|thumb|Putin as a child]]

His autobiography, ''Ot Pervogo Litsa'', (English: ''In the First Person'')<ref name="first-person" /> which is based on Putin's interviews, speaks of humble beginnings, including early years in a communal apartment in Leningrad. On 1 September 1960 he started at School No. 193 at Baskov Lane, just across from his house. By fifth grade he was one of a few in a class of more than 45 pupils who was not yet a member of the [[Young Pioneer organization of the Soviet Union|Pioneers]], largely because of his rowdy behavior. In sixth grade he started taking sport seriously in the form of [[sambo (martial art)|sambo]] and then [[judo]]. In his youth, Putin was eager to emulate the intelligence officer characters played on the [[Cinema of the Soviet Union|Soviet screen]] by actors such as [[Vyacheslav Tikhonov]] and [[Georgiy Zhzhonov]].

Putin graduated from the International Law branch of the Law Department of the [[Saint Petersburg State University|Leningrad State University]] in 1975, writing his final thesis on [[international law]].<ref>theme: {{lang-ru|«Принцип наиболее благоприятствуемой нации»}}[http://www.jurfak.spb.ru/student/graduate/default.asp?now=1975 Выпускники за 1975 год.] [[Saint Petersburg State University]]'s website. ("The principle of [[Most favoured nation|most favored nation]]").</ref> While at university he became a member of the [[Communist Party of the Soviet Union]], and remained a member until the party was dissolved in December 1991.<ref>Владимир Путин. ''От Первого Лица''. [http://www.kremlin.ru/articles/bookchapter6.shtml Chapter 6]</ref> Also at the University he met [[Anatoly Sobchak]], who later played important role in Putin's
career.{{Fact|date=December 2008}}

==KGB career==
[[File:Vladimir Putin in KGB uniform.jpg|left|thumb|upright|Putin in KGB uniform.]]
Putin joined the [[KGB]] in 1975 upon graduation from university, and underwent a year's training at the 401st KGB school in [[Okhta]], Leningrad. He then went on to work briefly in the Second Department (counter-intelligence) before he was transferred to the First Department, where among his duties was the monitoring of foreigners and consular officials in Leningrad, while using the cover of being a police officer with the CID.<ref>{{ref label|Sakwa2008|Sakwa 2008|b}} pp 8-9</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=David|last=Hoffman|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/russiagov/putin.htm|title=Putin's Career Rooted in Russia's KGB|publisher=[[The Washington Post]]|date=2000-01-30}}</ref> According to [[Yuri Felshtinsky]] and [[Vladimir Pribylovsky]], he served at the Fifth Directorate of the KGB, which combated [[political dissent]] in the Soviet Union.<ref name="Assassins">{{cite book|first=Yuri|last=Felshtinsky|authorlink=Yuri Felshtinsky|coauthors=[[Vladimir Pribylovsky]]|title=The Age of Assassins. The Rise and Rise of Vladimir Putin|publisher=Gibson Square Books|city=London|year=2008|isbn=190-614207-6|pages=45}}</ref> He then received an offer to transfer to foreign intelligence [[First Chief Directorate]] of the KGB and was sent for additional year long training to the Dzerzhinsky KGB Higher School in Moscow and then in the early eighties—the Red Banner Yuri Andropov KGB Institute in Moscow (now the Academy of Foreign Intelligence).

From 1985 to 1990 the KGB stationed Putin in [[Dresden]], [[East Germany]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2006/10/09/europe/EU_GEN_Germany_Russia.php|title=Putin set to visit Dresden, the place of his work as a KGB spy, to tend relations with Germany|publisher=[[International Herald Tribune]]|date=2006-10-09}}</ref> Following the collapse of the East German regime, Putin was recalled to the Soviet Union and returned to Leningrad, where in June 1991 he assumed a position with the International Affairs section of Leningrad State University, reporting to Vice-Rector [[Yuriy Molchanov]].<ref name="successor"/><ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/russiagov/putin.htm Putin's Career Rooted in Russia's KGB], [[David Hoffman]], [[Washington Post]] Foreign Service, January 30, 2000</ref> In his new position, Putin maintained surveillance on the student body and kept an eye out for recruits. It was during his stint at the university that Putin grew reacquainted with [[Anatoly Sobchak]], then mayor of Leningrad. Sobchak served as an Assistant Professor during Putin's university years and was one of Putin's lecturers. Putin formally resigned from the state security services on 20 August 1991, during the KGB-supported abortive [[Soviet coup attempt of 1991|putsch]] against Soviet President [[Mikhail Gorbachev]].

==Early political career==
[[Image:Vladimir Putin at Sabantui-1.jpg|thumb|upright|Putin at [[Sabantuy]] in [[Kazan]] in June 2000.]]
In May 1990, Putin was appointed Mayor Sobchak's advisor on international affairs. On 28 June 1991, he was appointed head of the [http://www.kvs.spb.ru/en/ Committee for External Relations] of the [[Saint Petersburg City Administration|Saint Petersburg Mayor's Office]], with responsibility for promoting international relations and foreign investments. The Committee was also used to register business ventures in Saint Petersburg. Less than one year after taking control of the committee, Putin was investigated by a commission of the city legislative council. Commission deputies [[Marina Salye]] and [[Yury Gladkov]] concluded that Putin understated prices and issued licenses permitting the export of non-ferrous metals valued at a total of $93 million in exchange for food aid from abroad that never came to the city.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hrvc.net/west/12-8-04.html |title=Uproar At Honor For Putin |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last=Kovalev |first=Vladimir |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2004-07-23 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=The Saint Petersburg Times |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/russiagov/putin.htm |title=Putin's Career Rooted in Russia's KGB |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last=Hoffman |first=David |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2000-01-30 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=The Washington Post |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.afpc.org/rrm/rrm755.htm |title=Russia Reform Monitor No. 755: U.S. Seen Helping Putin's Presidential Campaign; Documents, Ex-Investigators, Link Putin to Saint Petersburg Corruption |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=J. Michael Waller |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2000-03-17 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=American Foreign Policy Council, Washington, D.C. |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kommersant.com/p398799/r_1/New_Repartition_/ |title=New Repartition // What is to be done? |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=Boris Berezovsky |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2004-02-24 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=Kommersant |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sptimes.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=297 |title=Putin Should Settle Doubts About His Past Conduct |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last=Kovalev |first=Vladimir |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2005-07-29 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=The Saint Petersburg Times |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref> The commission recommended Putin be fired, but there were no immediate consequences. Putin remained head of the Committee for External Relations until 1996. While heading the Committee for External Relations, from 1992 to March 2000 Putin was also on the advisory board of the German [[real estate]] holding Saint Petersburg Immobilien und Beteiligungs AG (SPAG) which has been investigated by German prosecutors for money laundering.<ref>Roth, Jürgen. Die Gangster aus dem Osten. Hamburg: Europa Verlag, 2003. ISBN 3203815265</ref><ref>Duparc, Agathe et Vladimir Ivanidze. Le nom de M. Poutine apparaît en marge des affaires de blanchiment au Liechtenstein. Le Monde, 26.05.2000.</ref><ref>[http://russianlaw.org/newsweek090301.htm A Stain on Mr. Clean] by Mark Hosenball and Christian Karyl, [[Newsweek]], 3.09.2001</ref><ref>[http://www.rusnet.nl/news/2003/05/19/print/report03.shtml Putin’s Name Surfaces in German Probe] by Catherine Belton</ref><ref>[http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,1157033,00.html The Man Who Wasn't There] by Nick Paton Walsh. The Observer, 29 February 2004.</ref> According to German author and journalist [[Gabriele Krone-Schmalz]], in contrast to Yeltsin and his "family," Putin did not succumb to the temptation of corruption, pointing out a citation from [[Boris Berezovsky]] from 2002 - during the times of worst hostilities between the two - according to which Putin never took bribes during his time in office in St Petersburg.<ref name="russland">{{cite book|last=Krone-Schmalz|first=Gabriele|title=Was passiert in Russland?|publisher=F.A. Herbig|location=München|date=2008|edition=4th|pages=68-69|isbn=9783776625257|language=German}}</ref>

From 1994 to 1997, Putin was appointed to additional positions in the Saint Petersburg political arena. In March 1994 he became first deputy head of the administration of the city of Saint Petersburg. In 1995 (through June 1997) Putin led the Saint Petersburg branch of the pro-government [[Our Home Is Russia]] political party.<ref name="30bio">{{cite web |url=http://gazeta.lenta.ru/daynews/09-08-1999/30bio.htm |title=Владимир Путин: от ассистента Собчака до и.о. премьера |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date= |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=GAZETA.RU |pages= |language=Russian |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref> During this same period from 1995 through June 1997 he was also the head of the Advisory Board of the JSC Newspaper [[Sankt-Peterburgskie Vedomosti]].<ref name="30bio" />

In 1996, [[Anatoly Sobchak]] lost the Saint Petersburg mayoral election to [[Vladimir Anatolyevich Yakovlev|Vladimir Yakovlev]]. Putin was called to Moscow and in June 1996 assumed position of a Deputy Chief of the Presidential Property Management Department headed by [[Pavel Borodin]]. He occupied this position until March 1997. On 26 March 1997 President [[Boris Yeltsin]] appointed Putin deputy chief of [[Russian presidential administration|Presidential Staff]], which he remained until May 1998, and chief of the Main Control Directorate of the Presidential Property Management Department (until June 1998).

On 27 June 1997, at the [[Saint Petersburg Mining Institute]] Putin defended his [[Candidate of Science]] dissertation in economics titled "The Strategic Planning of Regional Resources Under the Formation of Market Relations".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.zavtra.ru/cgi/veil/data/zavtra/00/338/32.html |title=ПУТИН&nbsp;— КАНДИДАТ НАУК |accessdate= |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2000-05-24 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=zavtra.ru |pages= |language=Russian |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref> According to [[Clifford G Gaddy]], a senior fellow at The [[Brookings Institution]], 16 of the 20&nbsp;pages that open a key section of Putin’s 218-page thesis were copied either word for word or with minute alterations from a management study, Strategic Planning and Policy, written by US professors William King and David Cleland and translated into Russian by a KGB-related institute in the early 1990s.<ref>
{{cite news
|first=Tony
|last=Allen-Mills |authorlink= |author= |coauthors=
|title=Putin accused of plagiarising his PhD thesis
|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article695235.ece
|format=
|work=[[The Sunday Times (UK)|The Sunday Times]]
|publisher= |location= |id= |pages= |page=
|date=2006-03-26
|accessdate=2008-06-24
|language=
|quote=The embarrassing revelation that Putin, a former KGB agent, may have cheated and lied about his qualifications follows a long search by US scholars for evidence of the president’s academic prowess.
|archiveurl= |archivedate=
}}</ref><ref>[http://www.sptimes.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=17128 Putin Faces Plagiarism Accusation] St Petersburg Times</ref> 6&nbsp;diagrams and tables were also copied.<ref>
{{cite news
|first=Allison M.
|last=Heinrichs
|authorlink= |author= |coauthors=
|title=Putin plagiarized from Pitt professors
|url=http://pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/s_437473.html
|format=
|work=Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
|publisher= |location= |id= |pages= |page=
|date=2006-03-28
|accessdate=2008-06-24 |language=
|quote=If plagiarism is the sincerest form of flattery, then Russian President Vladimir Putin has made two University of Pittsburgh professors blush.
}}</ref> Gaddy doesn't believe that the plagiarism was really intentional "in the sense that if you had wanted to hide where the text came from you wouldn’t even list this work in the bibliography."<ref>[http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/2006-78-3a.cfm ‘It All Boils Down to Plagiarism’]</ref> The dissertation committee disagreed with Gaddy's claims. Chairman of the committee Natalia Pashkevich, accused Gaddy of not reading the dissertation very well. "There are references to the article mentioned. Everything is done correctly... It is only a plus for Vladimir Putin that he used not only Russian authors, but foreign ones as well." Anatoly Suslov, provost of economics at the Mining Institute, who was present at Putin dissertation defense, recalled "The opponent was someone from Moscow. The defense went calmly. There were many questions, of course, since it was a candidate's dissertation, but there was no question of plagiarism. No one uncovered anything of the kind. Vladimir Putin defended himself, and he prepared his own work. All those conversations about dissertations being bought are untrue. Ours isn't the kind of institute where you can do that."<ref>[http://www.kommersant.com/pda/doc.asp?id=662935 The President as Candidate] Kommersant</ref> In his dissertation, and in a later article published in 1999, Putin advocated the idea of so-called [[National champions]], a concept that would later become central to his political thinking.<ref name="marshall"/>

On 25 May 1998, Putin was appointed First Deputy Chief of [[Russian presidential administration|Presidential Staff]] for regions, replacing [[Viktoriya Mitina]]; and, on 15 July, the Head of the Commission for the preparation of agreements on the delimitation of power of regions and the federal center attached to the President, replacing [[Sergey Shakhray]]. After Putin's appointment, the commission completed no such agreements, although during Shakhray's term as the Head of the Commission there were 46 agreements signed.<ref>[http://www.itogi.ru/Paper2006.nsf/Article/Itogi_2006_11_19_01_5543.html The Half-Decay Products] (in Russian) by Oleg Odnokolenko. Itogi, #47(545), 2.01.2007.</ref>
On 25 July 1998 Yeltsin appointed Vladimir Putin head of the [[Federalnaya Sluzhba Bezopasnosti|FSB]] (one of the successor agencies to the KGB), the position Putin occupied until August 1999. He became a permanent member of the [[Security Council of the Russian Federation]] on 1 October 1998 and its Secretary on 29 March 1999. In April 1999, FSB Chief Vladimir Putin and Interior Minister [[Sergei Stepashin]] held a televised press conference in which they discussed a video that had aired nationwide 17 March on the state-controlled [[Russia TV channel]] which showed a naked man very similar to the [[Prosecutor General of Russia]], [[Yury Skuratov]], in bed with two young women. Putin claimed that expert FSB analysis proved the man on the tape to be Skuratov and that the orgy had been paid for by persons investigated for criminal offences.<ref name="successor">[http://www.lib.ru/HISTORY/FELSHTINSKY/naslednik.txt The Operation "Successor"] by [[Vladimir Pribylovsky]] and [[Yuriy Felshtinsky]], in Russian ([http://translate.google.com/translate?sl=ru&tl=en&u=http://www.lib.ru/HISTORY/FELSHTINSKY/naslednik.txt computer translation])</ref><ref>[http://www.psan.org/document519.html The Security Organs of the Russian Federation. A Brief History 1991-2004] by Jonathan Littell.</ref> Skuratov had been adversarial toward President Yeltsin and had been aggressively investigating government corruption<ref name="Satter-rfl">{{ru icon}} [http://www.svoboda.org/programs/sp/2003/sp.080803.asp Interview] with [[David Satter]] on [[Radio Liberty]], 8 August 2003.</ref>.

On 15 June 2000, ''[[The Times]]'' reported that Spanish police discovered that Putin had secretly visited a villa in Spain belonging to the oligarch [[Boris Berezovsky]] on up to five different occasions in 1999.<ref>{{cite news |first=Giles |last=Tremlett |title=Leader's secret holidays to Spain |date=15 June 2000 |publisher=[[The Times]] |url=http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/4379.html##5 |accessdate=2007-04-29 }}</ref>

==Premiership (1999)==
On 9 August 1999, Vladimir Putin was appointed one of three First Deputy Prime Ministers, which enabled him later on that day, as the previous government led by [[Sergei Stepashin]] had been sacked, to be appointed acting Prime Minister of the Government of the Russian Federation by President [[Boris Yeltsin]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/not_in_website/syndication/monitoring/415278.stm |title=Text of Yeltsin's speech in English |accessdate=2007-05-31 |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author= |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=1999-08-09 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=BBC News |pages= |language= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref> Yeltsin also announced that he wanted to see Putin as his successor. Later, that same day, Putin agreed to run for the presidency.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/415087.stm Yeltsin redraws political map] BBC, 10 August 1999</ref> On 16 August, the [[State Duma]] approved his appointment as Prime Minister with 233 votes in favour (vs. 84 against, 17 abstained),<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/422001.stm Yeltsin's man wins approval] BBC, 16 August 1999.</ref> while a simple majority of 226 was required, making him Russia's fifth PM in fewer than eighteen months. On his appointment, few expected Putin, virtually unknown to the general public, to last any longer than his predecessors. Yeltsin's main opponents and would-be successors, Moscow Mayor [[Yuriy Luzhkov]] and former Chairman of the Russian Government [[Yevgeniy Primakov]], were already campaigning to replace the ailing president, and they fought hard to prevent Putin's emergence as a potential successor. Putin's [[Law and order (politics)|law-and-order]] image and his unrelenting approach to the [[Second Chechen War|renewed crisis in Chechnya]] soon combined to raise his popularity and allowed him to overtake all rivals.

Putin's rise to public office in August 1999 coincided with an aggressive resurgence of the near-dormant conflict in the North Caucasus, when a number of Chechens invaded a neighboring region starting the [[War in Dagestan]]. Both in Russia and abroad, Putin's public image was forged by his tough handling of the war. On assuming the role of acting President on 31 December 1999, Putin went on a previously scheduled visit to Russian troops in Chechnya. In 2003, a controversial referendum was held in Chechnya adopting a new constitution which declares the Republic as a part of Russia. Chechnya has been gradually stabilized with the parliamentary elections and the establishment of a regional government.<ref>[http://news.independent.co.uk/europe/article2331993.ece Can Grozny be groovy?] by [[The Independent]], 13 March 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.hrw.org/campaigns/russia/chechnya/ Human Rights Watch Reports], on human rights abuses in Chechnya. Retrieved 22 November 2006</ref> Throughout the war Russia has severely disabled the Chechen rebel movement, although sporadic violence still occurs throughout the North Caucasus.<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html Russia Factbook] [[Central Intelligence Agency]]</ref>

While not formally associated with any party, Putin pledged his support to the newly formed [[Unity Party of Russia|Unity Party]],<ref>[http://www.nupi.no/cgi-win/Russland/polgrupp.exe?Unity Political groups and parties: Unity] Norsk Utenrikspolitisk Institutt</ref> which won the second largest percentage of the popular vote (23.3%) in the December 1999 [[Duma]] elections, and in turn he was supported by it.

==Presidency==
{{See also|Vladimir Putin legislation and program}}

===First term (2000&nbsp;– 2004)===
[[Image:Vladimir Putin with Boris Yeltsin-2.jpg|thumb|President [[Boris Yeltsin]] handing over the presidential copy of the [[Russian constitution]] to Vladimir Putin on 31 December 1999.]]
His rise to Russia's highest office ended up being even more rapid: on 31 December 1999, Yeltsin unexpectedly resigned and, according to the constitution, Putin became [[Acting President of the Russian Federation]].

The first Decree that Putin signed 31 December 1999, was the one "On guarantees for former president of the Russian Federation and members of his family".<ref>[http://www.rg.ru/oficial/doc/ykazi/1763.htm УКАЗ от 31 декабря 1999 г. № 1763 ''О ГАРАНТИЯХ ПРЕЗИДЕНТУ РОССИЙСКОЙ ФЕДЕРАЦИИ, ПРЕКРАТИВШЕМУ ИСПОЛНЕНИЕ СВОИХ ПОЛНОМОЧИЙ, И ЧЛЕНАМ ЕГО СЕМЬИ''.] [[Rossiyskaya Gazeta]] </ref><ref>[http://www.newizv.ru/news/?n_id=5273&curdate=2004-03-18 «Развращение» первого лица. Госдума не решилась покуситься на неприкосновенность экс-президента.] www.newizv.ru 18 March 2004.</ref> This ensured that "corruption charges against the outgoing President and his relatives" would not be pursued, although this claim is not strictly verifiable.<ref name="Time.com-POTY2007">[http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1690766-6,00.html Person of the Year 2007: A Tsar Is Born] by Adi Ignatius, Retrieved on 19 December 2007, Time.com</ref> Later on 12 February 2001 Putin signed a federal law on guarantees for former presidents and their families, which replaced the similar decree. In 1999, Yeltsin and his family were under scrutiny for charges related to money-laundering by the Russian and Swiss authorities.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/the_economy/441916.stm Yeltsin linked to bribe scandal] BBC, 8 September 1999.</ref>

While his opponents had been preparing for an election in June 2000, Yeltsin's resignation resulted in the elections being held within three months, in March.{{Fact|date=October 2008}} [[Russian presidential election, 2000|Presidential elections]] were held on 26 March 2000; Putin won in the first round.{{Fact|date=October 2008}}
[[Image:Vladimir Putin taking the Presidential Oath, 7 May 2000.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Vladimir Putin taking the Presidential Oath on 7 May 2000 with [[Boris Yeltsin]] looking on.]]
Vladimir Putin was inaugurated president on 7 May 2000. He appointed Financial minister [[Mikhail Kasyanov]] as his Prime minister. Having announced his intention to consolidate power in the country into a strict vertical, in May 2000 he issued a decree dividing 89 [[federal subjects of Russia]] between 7 [[federal districts of Russia|federal districts]] overseen by representatives of him in order to facilitate federal administration. In July 2000, according to a law proposed by him and approved by the [[Federal Assembly of Russia|Russian parliament]], Putin also gained the right to dismiss heads of the federal subjects.

During his first term in office, he moved to curb the political ambitions of some of the Yeltsin-era ''[[business oligarchs|oligarchs]]'' such as former Kremlin insider [[Boris Berezovsky]], who had "helped Mr Putin enter the family, and funded the party that formed Mr Putin's parliamentary base", according to BBC profile.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6708103.stm Profile: Boris Berezovsky] [[BBC]] Retrieved on 1 May 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/russia/article/0,,1655229,00.html What a carve-up!] [[The Guardian]] Retrieved on 28 April 2008</ref> At the same time, according to [[Vladimir Solovyov (journalist)|Vladimir Solovyev]], it was [[Alexey Kudrin]] who was instrumental in Putin's assignment to the [[Presidential Administration of Russia]] to work with [[Pavel Borodin]],<ref>[[Vladimir Solovyov (journalist)|Solovyev V. R.]] Putin. Guide For Those Who Cares / V. Solovyev. - Moscow, "Eksmo", 2008. - 416 pp. ISBN 978-5-699-23807-1. (Solovyev 2008). Page 36. (In Russian: Владимир Соловьев. "Путин. Путеводитель для неравнодушных." 2008.)</ref> and according to Solovyev, Berezovsky was proposing [[Igor Ivanov]] rather than Putin as a new president.<ref>[[Vladimir Solovyov (journalist)|Solovyev]] 2008, p. 39</ref> A new [[Political groups during Vladimir Putin's presidency|group of business magnate]]s, such as [[Gennady Timchenko]], [[Vladimir Yakunin]], [[Yuriy Kovalchuk]], [[Sergey Chemezov]], with close personal ties to Putin, emerged. A report by opposition leader [[Boris Nemtsov]] claims, that during Putin's rule corruption grew by the magnitude of several times and assumed "systemic and institutionalised form."<ref>[http://www.nemtsov.ru/docs/putin-itogi.pdf ''Независимый экспертеый доклад «Путин. Итоги»''] Experts' report by [[Boris Nemtsov]] and [[Vladimir Milov]] released in February 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.finiz.ru/cfin/tmpl-art/id_art-937000 За четыре года мздоимство в России выросло почти в десять раз (''Bribe-taking in Russia has increased by nearly ten times'')] ''Финансовые известия'' 21 July 2005.</ref><ref>[http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2006-07/2006-07-13-voa25.cfm Energy Revenues and Corruption Increase in Russia] [[Voice of America]] 13 July 2006.</ref><ref>[http://gazeta.aif.ru/online/aif/1290/04_01 Чума-2005: коррупция] [[Argumenty i Fakty]] № 29 (1290) July 2005</ref><ref>[http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/07/C6FC8C8F-C942-4D9F-897B-564EE730990E.html Russia: Bribery Thriving Under Putin, According To New Report] [[Radio Liberty]] 22 July 2005</ref><ref name=Guardian_40bn>{{cite web|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/dec/21/russia.topstories3|title=Putin, the Kremlin power struggle and the $40bn fortune|publisher=[[The Guardian]]|date=21 December 2007|last=Harding|first=Luke|accessdate=2008-08-18}}</ref> Corruption was characterized by Putin himself as "the most wearying and difficult to resolve" problem he encountered during his two terms in office.<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2008/02/14/1011_type82915_160266.shtml Transcript of Annual Big Press Conference], 14 February 2008, Kremlin.ru</ref>

Russia's legal reform continued productively during Putin's first term. In particular, Putin succeeded in the codification of land law and tax law, where progress had been slow during Yeltsin's administration, because of Communist and oligarch opposition, respectively. Other legal reforms included new codes on labour, administrative, criminal, commercial and civil procedural law, as well as a major statute on the Bar.<ref name="sharlet"/>
[[File:Vladimir and Lyudmila Putin visiting the Taj Mahal.jpg|thumb|Then President of Russia Vladimir Putin and wife [[Lyudmila Putina]] visiting the [[Taj Mahal]] in [[2000]].]]
The first major challenge to Putin's popularity came in August 2000, when he was criticised for his alleged mishandling of the [[Russian submarine Kursk explosion|''Kursk'' submarine disaster]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/1487112.stm Spectre of Kursk haunts Putin], [[BBC News]], 12 August 2001</ref>

In December 2000, Putin sanctioned the law to change the [[National Anthem of Russia]]. At the time the Anthem had music by [[Mikhail Glinka|Glinka]] and no words. The change was to restore (with a minor modification) the music of the post-1944 Soviet anthem by [[Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov|Alexandrov]], while the new text was composed by [[Sergey Mikhalkov|Mikhalkov]].<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/europe/12/08/russia.anthem/ Duma approves old Soviet anthem] CNN, 8 December 2000.</ref><ref>[http://www.statesymbol.ru/russymbols/symbols/20050407/39593449.html National anthem of Russian Federation], StateSymbol.Ru</ref>

Many in the Russian press and in the international media warned that the death of some 130 hostages in the special forces' rescue operation during the 2002 [[Moscow theater hostage crisis]] would severely damage President Putin's popularity. However, shortly after the siege had ended, the Russian president was enjoying record public approval ratings - 83% of Russians declared themselves satisfied with Putin and his handling of the siege.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/2565585.stm Moscow siege leaves dark memories], [[BBC News]], 16 December 2002</ref>

The [[arrest]] in early July 2003 of [[Platon Lebedev]], a [[Mikhail Khodorkovsky]] partner and second largest shareholder in [[Yukos]], on suspicion of illegally acquiring a stake in a state-owned [[fertilizer]] firm, [[Apatit]], in 1994, foreshadowed what by the end of the year became a full-fledged prosecution of Yukos and its management for fraud, embezzlement and tax evasion.

A few months before the elections, Putin fired Kasyanov's cabinet and appointed relatively obscure [[Mikhail Fradkov]] to his place. [[Sergey Ivanov]] became the first civilian in Russia to take Defence Minister position.

===Second term (2004&nbsp;– 2008)===
[[File:Vladimir Putin in Qatar 12 February 2007-4.jpg|thumb|right|Vladimir Putin with [[Hamad bin Khalifa|Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani]] in [[Doha]], [[Qatar]], 2007]]On 14 March 2004, [[Russian presidential election, 2004|Putin was re-elected]] to the presidency for a second term, receiving 71% of the vote.

By the beginning of Putin's second term he had undermined every independent source of political power in Russia, decreasing the degree of pluralism in the Russian society.<ref>Evans, Alfred B., Jr. Vladimir Putin's Design for Civil Society. In: Alfred B. Evans, Jr.; Laura A. Henry; Lisa McIntosh Sundstrom, ''Russian Civil Society: A Critical Assessment''. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2005. P. 147-158. ISBN 0765615223</ref>

Following the [[Beslan school hostage crisis]], in September 2004 Putin suggested the creation of the [[Public Chamber of Russia]] and launched an initiative to replace the direct election of the Governors and Presidents of the [[Federal subjects of Russia]] with a system whereby they would be proposed by the President and approved or disapproved by regional [[legislature]]s.<ref>Lynch, Dov (2005). [http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1468-2346.2005.00442.x "The enemy is at the gate": Russia after Beslan]. ''[[International Affairs (journal)|International Affairs]]'' 81 (1), 141–161.</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3650966.stm Putin tightens grip on security], [[BBC News]], 13 September 2004.</ref> He also initiated the merger of a number of federal subjects of Russia into larger entities. Whilst some in [[Beslan]] blamed Putin personally for the massacre in which hundreds died,<ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/europe/putins-legacy-is-a-massacre-say-the-mothers-of-beslan-787280.html Putin's legacy is a massacre, say the mothers of Beslan] ''[[The Independent]]'', 26 February 2008</ref> his overall popularity in Russia did not suffer.{{Fact|date=December 2008}}

According to various Russian and western media reports, one of the major domestic issue concerns for President Putin were the problems arising from the ongoing [[Demographics of Russia|demographic and social trends in Russia]], such as the death rate being higher than the birth rate, cyclical poverty, and housing concerns. In 2005, ''[[National Priority Projects]]'' were launched in the fields of [[Health care in Russia|health care]], [[Education in Russia|education]], housing and [[Agriculture in Russia|agriculture]]. In his May 2006 annual speech, Putin proposed increasing maternity benefits and [[prenatal care]] for women. Putin was strident about the need to reform the judiciary considering the present federal judiciary "Sovietesque", wherein many of the judges hand down the same verdicts as they would under the old Soviet judiciary structure, and preferring instead a judiciary that interpreted and implemented the code to the current situation. In 2005, responsibility for federal prisons was transferred from the [[Ministry of Internal Affairs (Russia)|Ministry of Internal Affairs]] to the [[Ministry of Justice (Russia)|Ministry of Justice]]. The most high-profile change within the national priority project frameworks was probably the 2006 across-the-board increase in wages in healthcare and education, as well as the decision to modernise equipment in both sectors in 2006 and 2007.<ref name="bofit">[http://www.bof.fi/NR/rdonlyres/C02B01A1-7210-472C-87C7-ABAF303168F7/0/bon0608.pdf The challenges of the Medvedev era, 2008]</ref>

One of the most controversial aspects of Putin's second term was the continuation of the criminal prosecution of Russia's richest man, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, President of [[YUKOS]], for fraud and [[tax evasion]]. While much of the international press saw this as a reaction against Khodorkovsky's funding for political opponents of the Kremlin, both liberal and communist, the Russian government had argued that Khodorkovsky was engaged in corrupting a large segment of the Duma to prevent changes in the tax code aimed at taxing windfall profits and closing [[tax haven|offshore tax evasion vehicles]]. Khodorkovsky's arrest was met positively by the Russian public, who see the oligarchs as thieves who were unjustly enriched and robbed the country of its natural wealth.<ref name=times>{{cite web |last=Page |first=Jeremy |title=Analysis: punished for his political ambitions |publisher=The Times |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/article523129.ece |accessdate=2007-12-27}}</ref> Many of the initial privatizations, including that of Yukos, are widely believed to have been fraudulent{{ndash}} Yukos, valued at some $30 billion in 2004, had been privatized for $110 million{{ndash}} and like other oligarchic groups, the Yukos-Menatep name has been frequently tarred with accusations of links to criminal organizations. Tim Osborne of GML, the majority owner of Yukos, said in February 2008: "Despite claims by President Vladimir Putin that the Kremlin had no interest in bankrupting Yukos, the company's assets were auctioned at below-market value. In addition, new debts suddenly emerged out of nowhere, preventing the company from surviving. The main beneficiary of these tactics was Rosneft. It is clearer now than ever that the expropriation of Yukos was a ploy to put key elements of the energy sector in the hands of Putin's retinue. Moreover, the Yukos affair marked a turning point in Russia's commitment to domestic property rights and the rule of law."<ref>[http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2008/02/15/006.html How to Steal Legally] by Tim Osborne, ''[[The Moscow Times]]'', 15 February 2008 (issue 3843, page 8).</ref> The fate of Yukos was seen by western media as a sign of a broader shift toward a system normally described as [[state capitalism]],<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/gvosdev200311050739.asp ''Putin’s Gamble. Where Russia is headed''] by [[Nikolas Gvosdev]], www.nationalreview.com, 5 November 2003.</ref><ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A37580-2004Jul8.html ''Putin's Kremlin Asserting More Control of Economy. Yukos Case Reflects Shift on Owning Assets, Notably in Energy''] by [[Peter Baker (author)|Peter Baker]],
''[[Washington Post]]'', 9 July 2004.</ref> Against the backdrop of the Yukos saga, questions were raised about the actual destination of $13.1&nbsp;billion<ref>[http://www.forbes.com/2005/10/12/russia-sibneft-abramovich-cz_hb_1012abramovich.html ''Abramovich Beyond Sibneft''] by [[Heidi Brown]], ''[[Forbes]]'', 12 October 2005.</ref> remitted in October 2005 by the state-run [[Gazprom]] as payment for 75.7% stake in [[Sibneft]] to [[Millhouse Capital UK Ltd|Millhouse]]-controlled [[Offshore bank|offshore]] accounts,<ref>[http://www.ngv.ru/article.aspx?articleID=21420 Газнефтепром] ''Нефтегазовая Вертикаль'' journal.</ref> after a series of generous dividend payouts and another $3 billion received from Yukos in a failed merger in 2003.<ref>[http://www.cdi.org/russia/johnson/9259-4.cfm ''Sibneft Deal May Just Be the Start''] by Valeria Korchagina, ''[[Moscow Times|The Moscow Times]]'', 30 September 2005.</ref> In 1996, [[Roman Abramovich]] and [[Boris Berezovsky]] had acquired the controlling interest in Sibneft for $100 million within the controversial [[loans for shares|loans-for-shares program]].<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/09/29/business/gazprom.php ''$13 billion Sibneft deal fulfills Gazprom quest''] by [[Andrew Kramer]], ''[[International Herald Tribune]]'', 29 September 2005.</ref> Some prominent Yeltsin-era billionaires, such as [[Sergey Pugachyov]], are reported to continue to enjoy close relationship with Putin's Kremlin.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article3177619.ece ''David Linley wooed by ‘Kremlin’s cashier’. Billionaire friend of Putin set to buy stake in viscount’s furniture business.''] by [[Nick Fielding]] [[The Sunday Times]] 13 January 2008.</ref>

Although Russia's state intervention in the economy had been usually heavily criticized in the West, a study by Bank of Finland’s Institute for Economies in Transition (BOFIT) in 2008 showed that state intervention had had a positive impact to [[corporate governance]] of many companies in Russia: the formal indications of the quality of corporate governance in Russia were higher in companies with state control or with a stake held by the government.<ref name="yakovlev">[http://www.bof.fi/NR/rdonlyres/3B399E29-C7A5-41A6-B22F-07C9C3E61E72/0/dp2608.pdf Andrei Yakovlev, State-business relations and improvement of corporate governance in Russia] Bank of Finland Institute for Economies in Transition, 2008</ref>

[[Image:Vladimir Putin Cockpit TU-160 Bomber.jpg|thumb|Vladimir Putin in the cockpit of [[Tupolev Tu-160]] strategic bomber (2005).]]

Since February 2006, the political philosophy of Putin's administration has often been described as a "[[Sovereign democracy]]", the term being used both with positive and pejorative [[connotation]]s. First proposed by [[Vladislav Surkov]] in February 2006, the term quickly gained currency within Russia and arguably unified various political elites around it. According to its proponents' interpretation, the government's actions and policies ought above all to enjoy popular support within Russia itself and not be determined from outside the country.<ref>[http://www.edinros.ru/news.html?id=111148 Sovereignty is a Political Synonym of Competitiveness] [[Vladislav Surkov]], public appear, 7 February 2006</ref><ref>[http://www.edinros.ru/news.html?id=114108 Our Russian Model of Democracy is Titled «Sovereign Democracy»] [[Vladislav Surkov]], briefing, 28 June 2006.</ref> However, as implied by expert of the [[Carnegie Endowment]] [[Masha Lipman]], "''Sovereign democracy'' is a Kremlin coinage that conveys two messages: first, that Russia's regime is democratic and, second, that this claim must be accepted, period. Any attempt at verification will be regarded as unfriendly and as meddling in Russia's domestic affairs." <ref>[http://www.carnegieendowment.org/publications/index.cfm?fa=view&id=18540 Putin's "Sovereign Democracy"]</ref>

During the term, Putin was widely criticized in the West and also by Russian liberals for what many observers considered a wide-scale crackdown on [[media freedom in Russia]]. Since the early 1990s, a number of Russian reporters who have covered the situation in [[Chechnya]], contentious stories on organized crime, state and administrative officials, and large businesses have been killed.<ref>[http://www.cpj.org/news/2006/europe/russia10oct06na.html CPJ calls on Putin to take responsibility for Politkovskaya murder probe] - Committee to Protect Journalists</ref><ref>http://www.cpj.org/Killed.database.FINAL.03.29.07.xls</ref> On 7 October 2006, [[Anna Politkovskaya]], a journalist who ran a campaign exposing corruption in the [[Russian army]] and its conduct in [[Chechnya]], was shot in the lobby of her apartment building. The death of Politkovskaya triggered an outcry of criticism of Russia in the Western media, with accusations that, at best, Putin has failed to protect the country's new independent media.<ref>[http://comment.independent.co.uk/columnists_m_z/joan_smith/article1822204.ece Putin's Russia failed to protect this brave woman], Joan Smith.</ref><ref>[http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/10/09/1358259 Anna Politkovskaya, Prominent Russian Journalist, Putin Critic and Human Rights Activist, Murdered in Moscow], Democracy Now</ref> When asked about Politkovskaya murder in his interview with the German TV channel [[ARD (broadcaster)|ARD]], Putin said that her murder brings much more harm to the Russian authorities than her publications.<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/appears/2006/10/10/2300_type63379_112351.shtml Answers on questions asked during interview to [[ARD (broadcaster)|ARD]] TV channel (Germany)], [[Dresden]], 10 October 2006</ref> In January 2008, [[Oleg Panfilov]], head of the Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations, claimed that a system of "judicial terrorism" had started against journalists under Putin and that more than 300 criminal cases had been opened against them over the past six years.<ref>[http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/01/15/002.html ''Paying for a Play on Putin's Name.''] by [[Francesca Mereu]] [[The Moscow Times]] 15 January 2008. Issue 3820. Page 1.</ref>

At the same time, according to 2005 research by [[VCIOM]], the share of Russians approving [[censorship in Russia|censorship]] on TV grew in a year from 63% to 82%; sociologists believed that Russians were not voting in favor of press freedom suppression, but rather for expulsion of ethically doubtful material (such as scenes of violence and sex).<ref name="vciom-censorship">Source: [http://www.russia-gateway.ru/content/NEWS/NewsItem_3026086/ 82% of Russians Approve TV Censorship], Russian Development Portal, 24 June 2005</ref>

In June 2007, Putin organised a conference for history teachers to promote a high-school teachers manual called ''A Modern History of Russia: 1945-2006: A Manual for History Teachers'' which portrays [[Joseph Stalin]] as a cruel but successful leader. Putin said at the conference that the new manual will "help instill young people with a sense of pride in Russia", and he argued that Stalin's [[Great Purge|purges]] pale in comparison to the United States' [[atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki]]. At a memorial for [[Stalin]]'s victims, Putin said that while Russians should "keep alive the memory of tragedies of the past, we should focus on all that is best in the country."<ref>[http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601085&sid=anSl5jtQ1FpI&refer=europe Stalin Back in Vogue as Putin Endorses History-Book Nostalgia] by Henry Meyer, [[Bloomberg.com]], 29 November 2007</ref>

In a 2007 interview with newspaper journalists from G8 countries, Putin spoke out in favor of a longer presidential term in Russia, saying "a term of five, six or seven years in office would be entirely acceptable".<ref name="Int_G8_2007">[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/06/04/2149_type82916_132716.shtml Interview with Newspaper Journalists from G8 Member Countries], 4 June 2007, full official transcript.</ref><ref name="Guardian_G8_2007">[http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6683118,00.html Putin: I Am the World's Only 'Pure Democrat']{{Dead link|date=December 2007}} by Jim Heintz ([[Associated Press]]). [[The Guardian]], 4 June 2007.</ref>

On 12 September 2007, Russian news agencies reported that Putin dissolved the government upon the request of Prime Minister [[Mikhail Fradkov]]. Fradkov commented that it was to give the President a "free hand" to make decisions in the run-up to the parliamentary election. [[Viktor Zubkov]] was appointed the new prime minister.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,296505,00.html Putin Dissolves Government, Nominates Viktor Zubkov as New Prime Minister]</ref>

In December 2007, [[United Russia]] won 64.24% of the popular vote in their run for [[State Duma]] according to election preliminary results.<ref>[http://www.rbc.ru/rbcfreenews.shtml?/20071204122205.shtml Election Preliminary Results for United Russia]{{Dead link|date=December 2007}}, 4 December 2007, Rbc.ru</ref> Their closest competitor, the [[Communist Party of Russia]], won approximately 12% of votes.<ref>[http://www.cikrf.ru/eng/elect_duma/results/index.jsp Preliminary results of voting], Retrieved on 4 December 2007, Central Election Commission of the Russian Federation</ref> United Russia's victory in December 2007 elections was seen by many as an indication of strong popular support of the then Russian leadership and its policies.<ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/politic/article3110945/ Russians Voted In Favour of Putin], 4 December 2007, Izvestia.ru</ref><ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/politic/article3110880/ Assenters' March], 3 December 2007, Izvestia.ru</ref>

The end of 2007 saw what both Russian and Western analysts viewed as an increasingly bitter infighting between various factions of the ''[[silovik]]i'' that make up a significant part of Putin's inner circle.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.newsweek.com/id/73233/output/print |title=Under A Quiet Surface. Forget democracy. The real Russian politics rages in the Kremlin. |accessdate=2007-12-12 |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=Owen Matthews |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors=Anna Nemtsova |date=2007-12-01 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=[[Newsweek]] |pages= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=In the last eight years we have created a very solid Soviet-style bureaucratic elite, with their own codes and speaking the same language.}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |title=''The secret policeman's election'' |work= |publisher=[[The Economist]] |date=6 December 2007 |url=http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10268185 |accessdate=2007-12-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/7ed8b2ba-a855-11dc-9485-0000779fd2ac.html |title=An apparatchik president? Why Russia expects Putin to stay on at Medvedev’s side |accessdate=2007-12-13 |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=Neil Buckley |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors=Catherine Belton |date=2007-12-12 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=[[Financial Times]] |pages= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=One former insider says the tussles looked as if the siloviki were paving the way for a takeover of power.}}</ref><ref>[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/988e00b0-ae9b-11dc-97aa-0000779fd2ac.html ''The man who wants to buy back Russia''.] by Catherine Belton [[Financial Times]] 20 December 2007.</ref><ref>[http://www.rbcdaily.ru/2007/12/03/focus/306494 Виктор Ядуха. ''Сеанс с разоблачением. Борьба кремлевских группировок переходит в новую стадию''.] РБК Daily Dec 3, 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.iamik.ru/?op=full&what=content&ident=38443 Сергей Баймухаметов. ''Шварцман выдал тайну''] ''Маркетинг и консалтинг'' News Agency 07 декабря 2007.</ref><ref>[http://novayagazeta.ru/data/2007/93/11.html Роман Шлейнов. ''Явление Шварцмана народу''] [[Novaya gazeta|''Novaya Gazeta'']] № 93 Dec 6, 2007.</ref><ref>[http://newsru.com/russia/14dec2007/sk_chaika.html В поисках нарушений: Генпрокуратура проверит Следственный комитет.] [[Newsru|NEWSru.com]] 14 December 2007.</ref>

In December 2007, the Russian sociologist Igor Eidman (VCIOM) qualified the regime that had solidified under Putin as "the power of bureaucratic [[oligarchy]]" which had "the traits of extreme right-wing dictatorship&nbsp;— the dominance of [[State monopoly capitalism|state-monopoly]] capital in the economy, ''silovoki'' structures in governance, [[clericalism]] and [[statism]] in ideology".<ref>[http://vremya.ru/2007/230/4/194002.html Популяры вместо оптиматов. Оппозиция в России может быть только новой и левой.] [[Vremya Novostei]] № 230 14 December 2007.</ref> Some analysts assess the socio-economic system which has emerged in Russia as profoundly unstable and the situation in the Kremlin after [[Dmitry Medvedev]]'s nomination as fraught with a [[coup d'état]], as "Putin has built a political construction that resembles a pyramid which rests on its tip, rather than on its base".<ref>[http://www.economist.com/theworldin/europe/displayStory.cfm?story_id=10092027&d=2008 ''Putin’s pyramid.''] by Arkady Ostrovsky [[The Ecjnjmist]] From The World in 2008 print edition.</ref><ref>[http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/01/09/006.html ''Purge or Coup?''] by [[Anders Åslund]], ''[[The Moscow Times]]'', 9 January 2008.</ref>

[[Gregory Feifer]] wrote in February 2008: "The main lesson we should have learned from Putin's eight years in office is a recognition that under the traditional Russian political system that he has revitalized, not only do officials not mean what they say, but also that obfuscation is essential to the way it all works&nbsp;... Putin's playing of the Russian political game has been virtuosic."<ref>[http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/02/05/005.html ''The Master of Bluff.''] by [[Gregory Feifer]] [[The Moscow Times]] 5 February 2008. Issue 3835. Page 10.</ref> On the eve of his stepping down as president the [[Financial Times|FT]] editorialised: "Mr Putin will remain Russia’s real ruler for some time to come. And the ex-KGB men he promoted will stay close to the seat of power."<ref>[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/26452580-1b9a-11dd-9e58-0000779fd2ac.html Seize the moment, talk to Medvedev.] [[Financial Times]] 6 May 2008.</ref>

On 8 February 2008, Putin delivered a speech before the expanded session of the [[State Council]] headlined "On the Strategy of Russia's Development until 2020",<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/appears/2008/02/08/1542_type63374type63378type82634_159528.shtml Выступление на расширенном заседании Государственного совета «О стратегии развития России до 2020 года».] RF President's official web site, 8 February 2008.</ref> which was interpreted by the Russian media as his "political bequest". The speech was largely devoted to castigating the state of affairs in the 1990s and setting ambitious targets of economic growth by 2020.<ref>[http://www.ej.ru/?a=note&id=7792 ''Итоги недели. Блестящее будущее осажденной крепости.''] by Alexander Golts ''Yezhednevny Zhurnal'' Feb 8, 2008.</ref> He also condemned the [[expansion of NATO]] and the US plan to include [[Poland]] and the [[Czech Republic]] in a [[National missile defense|missile defence shield]] and promised that "Russia has, and always will have, responses to these new challenges".<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7234817.stm Putin vows 'arms race' response.] [[BBC]] 8 February 2008.</ref>

In his last days in office he was reported to have taken a series of steps to re-align the regional bureaucracy to make the governors report to the prime minister rather than the president.<ref>[http://newsru.com/russia/30apr2008/ukazz.html Будущий премьер Путин намерен лично контролировать губернаторов] [[NEWSru.com]] 30 April 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.ng.ru/politics/2008-04-30/1_gubernator.html?mthree=1 Губернаторов начальник. Будущий премьер намерен лично контролировать региональных руководителей (''The chief of governors. The future premier intends to personally check regional leaders.'')] [[Nezavisimaya gazeta]] 30 April 2008.</ref> The presidential site explained that "the changes... bear a refining nature and do not affect the essential positions of the system. The key role in estimating the effectiveness of activity of regional authority still belongs to President of the Russian Federation."

===Internal policy===
{{See also|Economy of Russia}}
[[Image:Russian economy since fall of Soveit Union.PNG|thumb|350px|Russian economy since the end of the [[Soviet Union]].]]
Under the Putin administration the economy made [[List of countries by GDP (real) growth rate|real gains]] of an average 7% per year (2000: 10%, 2001: 5.7%, 2002: 4.9%, 2003: 7.3%, 2004: 7.1%, 2005: 6.5%, 2006: 6.7%, 2007: 8.1%), making it the 7th largest economy in the world in [[List of countries by GDP (PPP)|purchasing power]]. Russia's [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|nominal]] [[Gross Domestic Product]] (GDP) increased 6 fold, climbing from 22nd to 10th largest in the world. In 2007, Russia's GDP exceeded that of [[Russian SFSR]] in 1990, meaning it has overcome the devastating consequences of the [[1998 Russian financial crisis|1998 financial crisis]] and preceding recession in the 1990s.<ref name="stats"/>

During Putin's eight years in office, industry grew by 76%, investments increased by 125%,<ref name="stats"/> and agricultural production and construction increased as well. Real incomes more than doubled and the average monthly salary increased sevenfold from $80 to $540.<ref name="nbc">{{cite news
| title = Russians weigh Putin's protégé
| publisher = [[Associated Press]]
| location = [[Moscow]]
| date = 3 May 2008
| url = http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24443419/print/1/displaymode/1098/
| accessdate = 2008-12-29 }}</ref><ref name="russiaprofile">[http://www.russiaprofile.org/page.php?pageid=Business&articleid=a1187177738 Putin’s Economy&nbsp;– Eight Years On] Russia Profile, Retrieved on 23 April 2008</ref><ref>[http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/FEC37480-C9B7-488E-BEDB-A9C9A8C0700C.htm Medvedev is new Russian president] [[Al Jazeera]] Retrieved on 7 May 2008</ref> From 2000 to 2006 the volume of consumer credit increased 45 times<ref name=vtbmagazine>[http://www.vtbmagazine.ru/number_detail.asp?aid=87 РОЗНИЧНЫЙ ПОДХОД. Российские банки борются за частников]</ref><ref name=samaratoday>[http://bank.samaratoday.ru/showNews.php?idNews=741 Ежегодно объем потребительского кредитования в России удваивается ]</ref> and the middle class grew from 8 million to 55 million. The number of people living below the poverty line decreased from 30% in 2000 to 14% in 2008.<ref name="stats">[http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20080301/100381963.html Russia’s economy under Vladimir Putin: achievements and failures] [[RIA Novosti]] Retrieved on 1 May 2008</ref><ref name=gks>[http://www.gks.ru/free_doc/2006/b06_11/07-01.htm ОСНОВНЫЕ СОЦИАЛЬНО-ЭКОНОМИЧЕСКИЕ ИНДИКАТОРЫ УРОВНЯ ЖИЗНИ НАСЕЛЕНИЯ]</ref><ref name=CIA>[https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/rs.html#Econ [[CIA]] - The World Factbook - Russia<!--Bot generated title-->]</ref> A number of large-scale reforms in retirement (2002), banking (2001–2004), tax (2000–2003), the monetization of benefits (2005) and others have taken place.

In 2001 Putin, who has advocated liberal economic policies, introduced [[flat tax]] rate of 13%<ref name="heritage">[http://www.heritage.org/press/commentary/ed032403.cfm Russia's Flat-Tax Miracle] March 24, 2003.</ref><ref>[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-536806.html Putin Advocates Strong Russia, Liberal Economy; President Surprisingly Candid In First State of Nation Address]</ref>; the corporate rate of tax was also reduced from 35 percent to 24 percent; <ref name="heritage"/> Small businesses also get better treatment. The old system with high tax rates has been replaced by a new system where companies can choose either a 6 percent tax on gross revenue or a 15 percent tax on profits.<ref name="heritage"/> Overall tax burden is lower in Russia than in most European countries.<ref name="taxcompare">[http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=526745 A Comparative Study of Taxation in Russia and Other CIS, East European and OECD Countries]</ref>

A central concept in Putin's economic thinking was the creation of so-called [[National champions]], vertically integrated companies in strategic sectors, that are expected not only to seek profit, but also to "advance the interests of the nation." Examples of such companies include [[Gazprom]], [[Rosneft]] and [[United Aircraft Corporation]].<ref name="marshall">{{cite book|last=Goldman|first=Marshall I.|title=Petrostate: Putin, Power and the New Russia|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=2008|chapter=Chapter 5|isbn=9780195340730}}</ref>

Before the Putin era, in 1998, over 60% of industrial turnover in Russia was based on barter and various monetary surrogates. The use of such alternatives to money now fallen out of favour, which has boosted economic productivity significantly. Besides raising wages and consumption, Putin's government has received broad praise also for eliminating this problem.<ref name="challenges_of_medv_era">[http://www.bof.fi/NR/rdonlyres/C02B01A1-7210-472C-87C7-ABAF303168F7/0/bon0608.pdf Korhonen et at, The challanges of the Medvedev era] Bank of Finland's Institute for Economies in Transition, 2008</ref>

The flow of [[petrodollar]]s was the foundation of Putin's regime and masked economic woes. The share of oil and gas in Russia's gross domestic product has more than doubled since 1999 and as of Q2 2008 stood at above 30%. Oil and gas account for 50% of Russian budget revenues and 65% of its exports.<ref name="Troublepipe">{{cite web |title=Trouble in the pipeline |publisher=[[The Economist]] |date=8 May 2008 |url=http://www.economist.com/business/PrinterFriendly.cfm?story_id=11332313 |accessdate=2008-11-26}}</ref>

Some oil revenue went to [[Stabilization Fund of the Russian Federation|stabilization fund]] established in 2004. The fund accumulated oil revenue, which allowed Russia to repay all of the Soviet Union's debts by 2005. In early 2008, it was split into the Reserve Fund (designed to protect Russia from possible global financial shocks) and the National Welfare Fund, whose revenues will be used for a pension reform.<ref name="stats"/>

[[Inflation]] remained a problem however, as the government failed to contain the growth of prices. Between 1999–2007 inflation was kept at the forecast ceiling only twice, and in 2007 the inflation exceeded that of 2006, continuing an upward trend at the beginning of 2008.<ref name=stats/> The Russian economy is still commodity-driven despite its growth. Payments from the fuel and energy sector in the form of customs duties and taxes accounted for nearly half of the federal budget's revenues. The large majority of Russia's exports are made up by raw materials and fertilizers,<ref name=stats/> although exports as a whole accounted for only 8.7% of the GDP in 2007, compared to 20% in 2000.<ref>[http://www.kommersant.com/p882678/r_527/macroeconomics/ Rosstat Confirms Record GDP Growth] [[Kommersant]] Retrieved on 5 May 2008</ref> There is also a growing gap between rich and poor in Russia. Between 2000–2007 the incomes of the rich grew from approximately 14 times to 17 times larger than the incomes of the poor. The income differentiation ratio shows that the 10% of Russia's rich live increasingly better than the 10% of the poor, amongst whom are mostly pensioners and unskilled workers in depressive regions (see [[Gini coefficient]]).

====Environmental record====
In 2004 President Putin signed the [[Kyoto Protocol]] treaty designed to reduce green house gasses. <ref>New York Times 6 November 2004 retrieved 20 April 2008</ref> Although, because the Kyoto Protocol limits emissions to a percentage increase or decrease from their 1990 levels Russia did not face mandatory cuts since its greenhouse-gas emissions fell well below the 1990 baseline due to a drop in economic output after the breakup of the Soviet Union.<ref> [http://www.cfr.org/publication/13640/g8s_gradual_move_toward_postkyoto_climate_change_policy.html Tony Johnson, staff writer: Council on Foreign Relations] </ref>

Recently during the past election Putin and his assumed successor have been talking about the need for Russia to crack down on polluting companies and clean up Russia’s environment. He has been quoted as saying “Working to protect nature must become the systematic, daily obligation of state authorities at all levels.” President Medvedev has also been quoted as saying "There is not much they fear because the penalty for environmental damage is frequently 10 times, even 100 times less than the fees to meet environmental requirements." <ref> ABC news 8 February 2008 Retrieved 20 April 2008. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/08/2157436.htm</ref>{{Updateneed}}

===Foreign policy===
{{Main|Foreign policy of Vladimir Putin}}
[[File:Vladimir Putin in Cuba 14-17 December 2000-2.jpg|right|thumb|Putin with [[Fidel Castro]] in 2000, re-establishing close ties between Russia and Cuba.]]
[[File:Vladimir Putin in Iran 16-17 October 2007-1.jpg|thumb|right|Putin with [[Supreme Leader of Iran]], Ayatollah [[Ali Khamenei]], 2007]]
In [[international affairs]], Putin has been publicly and increasingly critical of the [[foreign policy|foreign policies]] of the [[Foreign policy of the United States|US]] and other Western countries. Some commentators have linked this increase in hostility towards the West with the global rise in oil prices.<ref name="Liquid Courage"> Liquid Courage, ''The American'', by Charlie Szrom and Thomas Brugato. [http://www.american.com/archive/2008/february-02-08/liquid-courage], 22 February 2008.</ref> In February 2007, at the annual [[Munich Conference on Security Policy]], he criticized what he calls the United States' monopolistic dominance in global relations, and pointed out that the United States displayed an "almost uncontained hyper use of force in international relations". He said the result of it is that "no one feels safe! Because no one can feel that [[international law]] is like a stone wall that will protect them. Of course such a policy stimulates an arms race."<ref name="Munich">43rd [[Munich Conference on Security Policy]]. [http://president.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/02/10/0138_type82912type82914type82917type84779_118123.shtml Putin's speech in English], 10 February 2007.</ref>

He called for a "fair and democratic world order that would ensure security and prosperity not only for a select few, but for all". He proposed certain initiatives such as establishing international centres for the [[enrichment of uranium]] and prevention of [[Militarisation of space|deploying weapons in outer space]].<ref name="Munich"/> In his January 2007 interview Putin said Russia is in favor of a democratic [[Polarity in international relations|multipolar]] world and of strengthening the systems of [[international law]].<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/01/18/0726_type82916_117121.shtml Interview] for Indian Television Channel Doordarshan and Press Trust of India News Agency, 18 January 2007. </ref>

While Putin is often characterised as an [[autocrat]] by the Western media and many opposition politicians (most notably, [[Boris Nemtsov]], [[Mikhail Kasyanov]] and [[Ilya Yashin]]),<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A21853-2004Sep14.html ''Stand Up to Putin.'' by Robert Kagan] [[The Washington Post]] 15 September 2004</ref><ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/12/13/opinion/mcfaul.php ''The myth of Putin's success''. By Michael McFaul and Kathryn Stoner-Weiss] [[International Herald Tribune|IHT]] 13 December 2007</ref> his relationship with former American President [[George W. Bush]], former [[Germans|German]] [[Chancellor of Germany (Federal Republic)|Chancellor]] [[Gerhard Schröder]], former [[French President]] [[Jacques Chirac]], and [[Italian Prime Minister]] [[Silvio Berlusconi]] are reported to be personally friendly. Putin's relationship with Germany's new Chancellor, [[Angela Merkel]], was reported to be "cooler" and "more business-like" than his partnership with Gerhard Schröder. This observation is often attributed to the fact that Merkel was raised in the former DDR, the country of station of Putin when he was a KGB agent.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4618860.stm Merkel cools Berlin Moscow ties] BBC News 16 January 2006</ref>

In the wake of the [[September 11, 2001 attacks|September 11 attacks]] on the United States, he agreed to the establishment of coalition military bases in [[Central Asia]] before and during the [[War in Afghanistan (2001-present)|US-led invasion of Afghanistan]]. Russian nationalists objected to the establishment of any US military presence on the territory of the former Soviet Union, and had expected Putin to keep the US out of the Central Asian republics, or at the very least extract a commitment from Washington to withdraw from these bases as soon as the immediate military necessity had passed.

During the [[Iraq crisis of 2003]], Putin opposed Washington's move to invade [[Iraq]] without the benefit of a [[United Nations Security Council]] resolution explicitly authorizing the use of military force. After the official end of the war was announced, American President [[George W. Bush]] asked the United Nations to lift sanctions on [[Iraq]]. Putin supported lifting of the sanctions in due course, arguing that the [[United Nations|UN]] commission first be given a chance to complete its work on the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

[[File:Putin and Schroeder number2.JPG|left|thumb|Putin with [[Gerhard Schröder]] in 2005.]]
In 2005, Putin and former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder negotiated the construction of a [[Nord Stream|major gas pipeline over the Baltic]] exclusively between Russia and Germany. Schröder also attended Putin's 53rd birthday in Saint Petersburg the same year.

The [[Commonwealth of Independent States|CIS]], seen in Moscow as its traditional [[sphere of influence]], became one of the foreign policy priorities under Putin, as the [[EU]] and [[NATO]] have grown to encompass much of [[Central Europe]] and, more recently, the [[Baltic states]].

During the [[Ukrainian presidential election, 2004|2004 Ukrainian presidential election]], Putin twice visited Ukraine before the election to show his support for [[Ukrainian Prime Minister]] [[Viktor Yanukovych]], who was widely seen as a pro-Kremlin candidate, and he congratulated him on his anticipated victory before the official election returns had been announced. Putin's personal support for Yanukovych was criticised as unwarranted interference in the affairs of a sovereign state. Crises also developed in Russia's relations with [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] and [[Moldova]], both former Soviet republics who accused Moscow of supporting separatist entities in their territories. [[John McCain]] views Moscow's policies under Putin towards these states to be attempts to bully them.<ref>{{cite web |last=McCain |first=John |title=An Enduring Peace Built on Freedom // Revitalizing the Transatlantic Partnership |work=Foreign Affairs |publisher=[[Council on Foreign Relations]] |date=November/December 2007, Vol 86, Number 6 |url=http://www.foreignaffairs.org/20071101faessay86602-p30/john-mccain/an-enduring-peace-built-on-freedom.html |accessdate=2008-02-06}}</ref>

Putin took an active personal part in promoting the [[Act of Canonical Communion with the Moscow Patriarchate]] signed 17 May 2007 that restored relations between the Moscow-based [[Russian Orthodox Church]] and the [[Russian Orthodox Church Outside Russia]] after the 80-year schism.<ref>{{cite press release|title= he President of Russia attended the ceremonial signing of the Act on Canonical Communion that was held in the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour|publisher=[[Embassy of Russia in Ottawa]]|date=17 May 2007|url=http://www.rusembcanada.mid.ru/pr2007/022.html|accessdate =2008-10-02}} Archived by [[WebCite]] at [http://www.webcitation.org/5bGjBVfm6 www.webcitation.org/5bGjBVfm6]</ref>

In his annual address to the [[Federal Assembly of Russia|Federal Assembly]] on 26 April 2007, Putin announced plans to declare a moratorium on the observance of the [[Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe|CFE Treaty]] by Russia until all NATO members ratified it and started observing its provisions, as Russia had been doing on a unilateral basis. Putin argues that as new NATO members have not even signed the treaty so far, an imbalance in the presence of NATO and Russian armed forces in Europe creates a real threat and an unpredictable situation for Russia.<ref name="annual_address_cfe">[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/04/26/1209_type70029type82912_125670.shtml Annual Address to the Federal Assembly], 26 April 2007, Kremlin, Moscow</ref> NATO members said they would refuse to ratify the treaty until Russia complied with its 1999 commitments made in [[Istanbul]] whereby Russia should remove troops and military equipment from [[Moldova]] and [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]]. The [[Russian Foreign Minister]], [[Sergey Lavrov]], was quoted as saying in response that "Russia has long since fulfilled all its Istanbul obligations relevant to CFE".<ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/news/news156321 Lavrov Announced Conditions of Resuming CFE Observance], 3 December 2007, Izvestia.ru</ref> Russia suspended its participation in the CFE as of midnight [[Moscow time]] on 11 December 2007.<ref>{{cite web |title=Russia walks away from CFE arms treaty |publisher=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP]] via [[Yahoo! News]] |date=12 December 2007 |url=http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071212/ts_afp/russiausnatomilitarycfe_071212075936 |accessdate=2007-12-13}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Russia Suspends Participation In CFE Treaty |publisher=[[Radio Liberty]] |date=12 December 2007 |url=http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/12/b1d3648d-7728-4fbb-8c52-0d2d2ee65453.html |accessdate=2007-12-13}}</ref> On 12 December 2007, the United States officially said it "deeply regretted the Russian Federation's decision to 'suspend' implementation of its obligations under the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe (CFE)." State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, in a written statement, claimed that "Russia's conventional forces are the largest on the European continent, and its unilateral action damages this successful arms control regime."<ref>{{cite web |title=US 'deeply regrets' Russia's 'wrong' decision on CFE |publisher=[[Agence France-Presse|AFP]] |date=12 December 2007 |url=http://www.spacewar.com/reports/US_deeply_regrets_Russias_wrong_decision_on_CFE_999.html |accessdate=2007-12-13}}</ref> NATO's primary concern arising from Russia's suspension was that Moscow could accelerate its military presence in the [[North Caucasus]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Putin poised to freeze arms pact as assertiveness grows |publisher=[[Financial Times]] |date=12 December 2007 |url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/bf64d30e-a855-11dc-9485-0000779fd2ac.html |accessdate=2007-12-13}}</ref>

The months following Putin's [[Munich]] speech<ref name="Munich"/> were marked by tension and a surge in rhetoric on both sides of the Atlantic. So, Vladimir Putin said at the anniversary of the [[Victory Day (Eastern Europe)|Victory Day]], "these threats are not becoming fewer but are only transforming and changing their appearance. These new threats, just as under the [[Third Reich]], show the same contempt for human life and the same aspiration to establish an exclusive dictate over the world."<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/05/09/1432_type82912type127286_127675.shtml Speech at the Military Parade Celebrating the 62nd Anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War], Red Square, Moscow, 9 May 2007</ref> On the eve of the 33rd Summit of the G8 in [[Heiligendamm]], neoconservative author [[Anne Applebaum]] opined that "Whether by waging [[Cyberattacks on Estonia 2007|cyberwarfare on Estonia]], threatening the gas supplies of Lithuania, or boycotting [[2006 Russian ban of Moldovan and Georgian wines|Georgian wine]] and Polish meat, he [Putin] has, over the past few years, made it clear that he intends to reassert Russian influence in the former communist states of Europe, whether those states want Russian influence or not. At the same time, he has also made it clear that he no longer sees Western nations as mere benign trading partners, but rather as [[Cold War]]-style threats."<ref> [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2007/06/05/do0502.xml Putin is playing a dangerous game] by [[Anne Applebaum]], 05/06/2007.</ref>

[[Max Hastings]] opined that a scenario of military confrontation reminiscent of the [[Cold War]] was unlikely, he stated his belief that warm ties between Russia and the West was untenable notion.<ref name="hastings_cold_war">[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=459919&in_page_id=1770 A blundering Bush, Tsar Putin, and the question: will we, in this century, have to fight Russia?] by [[Max Hastings]], 5 June 2007, Daily Mail</ref> Both Russian and American officials always denied the idea of a new Cold War. The US defence secretary [[Robert Gates]] said on the Munich Conference: "We all face many common problems and challenges that must be addressed in partnership with other countries, including Russia. ... One Cold War was quite enough."<ref>[http://www.defenselink.mil/speeches/speech.aspx?speechid=1123 Munich Conference on Security Policy, As Delivered by Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates [[Munich]], Germany 11 February 2007]</ref> Vladimir Putin said prior to 33rd G8 Summit, on 4 June: "we do not want confrontation; we want to engage in dialogue. However, we want a dialogue that acknowledges the equality of both parties’ interests."<ref name="Int_G8_2007"/>

Putin publicly opposed plans for the [[National missile defense|U.S. missile shield]] in Europe, and presented President [[George W. Bush]] with a counterproposal on 7 June 2007 of modernising and sharing the use of the Soviet-era [[Qabala|Gabala]] radar station in [[Azerbaijan]] rather than building a new system in the [[Czech Republic]]. Putin proposed it would not be necessary to place interceptor missiles in Poland then, but interceptors could be placed in NATO member [[Turkey]] or [[Iraq]]. Putin suggested also equal involvement of interested European countries in the project.<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/06/08/2251_type82914type82915_133552.shtml Press Conference following the end of the G8 Summit], 8 June 2007</ref>
[[File:Joint CIS photo session-1.jpg|thumb|right|Leaders of the [[CIS]] at [[Moscow Kremlin|the Kremlin]] on 26 January 2000.]]

In a 4 June 2007, interview to journalists of [[G8]] countries, when answering the question of whether Russian nuclear forces may be focused on European targets in case "the United States continues building a strategic shield in [[Poland]] and the [[Czech Republic]]", Putin admitted that "if part of the United States’ nuclear capability is situated in Europe and that our military experts consider that they represent a potential threat then we will have to take appropriate retaliatory steps. What steps? Of course we must have new targets in Europe."<ref name="Int_G8_2007"/><ref>Doug Sanders, [http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20070602.wputin01/BNStory/International/home "Putin threatens to target Europe with missiles"], ''[[The Globe and Mail]]'', 2 June 2007</ref><ref>[http://en.rian.ru/analysis/20071115/88281798.html Asymmetrical Iskander missile systems], RIA Novosti, 15 November 2007</ref>

The end of 2006 brought strained [[Russia–United Kingdom relations|relations between Russia and the United Kingdom]] in the wake of the death by poisoning of [[Alexander Litvinenko]] in London. On 20 July 2007 [[Prime Minister of the United Kingdom|UK Prime Minister]] [[Gordon Brown]] expelled four Russian [[diplomat|envoys]] over Russia's refusal to extradite [[Andrei Lugovoi]] to face charges on the alleged murder of Litvinenko.<ref name="expul">{{cite news|title=Brown Defends Russian Expulsions, Decries Killings|author=Gonzalo Vina and Sebastian Alison|url=http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601102&sid=ajvS9NfMW2EE&refer=uk|publisher=Bloomberg News|date=20 July 2007}}</ref> The Russian constitution prohibits the extradition of Russian nationals to third countries. [[Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs|British Foreign Secretary]] [[David Miliband]] said that "this situation is not unique, and other countries have amended their constitutions, for example to give effect to the European Arrest Warrant".<ref>[http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029391629&a=KArticle&aid=1183544695364 David Miliband's oral statement to the Commons on the Litvinenko case], 16 July 2007</ref>

Miliband's statement was widely publicized by [[Media in Russia|Russian media]] as a British proposal to change the Russian constitution.<ref>[http://www.vz.ru/politics/2007/8/29/104843.html Lugovoi Has Disclosed Next Martyr], 29 August 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.vedomosti.ru/newspaper/article.shtml?2007/07/17/129351 London Proposes to Moscow Changing Constitution], 17 July 2007</ref><ref name="john-lennon-revolution">[http://www.vzglyad.ru/columns/2007/8/17/101515.html John Lennon on Russian Constitution], 17 August 2007</ref> According to [[VCIOM]], 62% of Russians are against changing the Constitution in this respect.<ref>[http://top.rbc.ru/politics/21/08/2007/114260.shtml VCIOM: Russians Oppose Lugovoi Extradition to Brits], Rbc.ru, 21 August 2007</ref> The [[Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Russia|British Ambassador in Moscow]] [[Tony Brenton]] said that the UK is not asking Russia to break its Constitution, but rather interpret it in such a way that would make Lugovoi's extradition possible.<ref>[http://www.gorod.lv/novosti/54959/britanskiy_posol_predlozhil_rossii_po_novomu_interpretirovat_svoyu_konstitutsiyu British Ambassador Suggests Russia Interprets Its Constitution In New Ways], Gorod.lv, 23 July 2007</ref> At a meeting with Russian youth organisations, he stated that the [[United Kingdom]] was acting like a [[colonial power]] with a mindset stuck in the 19th or 20th centuries, due to their belief that Russia could change its constitution. He also stated, "They say we should change our Constitution&nbsp;– advice that I view as insulting for our country and our people. They need to change their thinking and not tell us to change our Constitution."<ref>[http://www.times.spb.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=22466 Putin Lashes Out at Nashi Gathering] by David Nowak, [[The St. Petersburg Times]], Issue #1292 (58), [[2007-07-27]].</ref><ref>{{cite web
| title = Выдержки из стенографического отчета о встрече с представителями молодежных организаций России
| publisher = [[President of Russia]]
| location = [[Zavidovo]], [[Tver Oblast]]
| date = 24 July 2007
| url = http://www.kremlin.ru/appears/2007/07/24/2111_type63376type63381_138523.shtml
| accessdate = 2008-12-28 }} [http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/07/24/1048_type82917type84779_138687.shtml English translation]</ref>

When [[Alexander Litvinenko|Litvinenko]] was dying from radiation poisoning, he allegedly accused Putin of directing the assassination in a statement which was released shortly after his death by his friend [[Alexander Goldfarb (microbiologist)|Alex Goldfarb]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6180262.stm In full: Litvinenko statement], BBC News, 24 November 2006</ref> Goldfarb, who is also the chairman of [[Boris Berezovsky]]'s [[International Foundation for Civil Liberties]], claimed Litvinenko had dictated it to him three days earlier. [[Andrei Nekrasov]] said his friend Litvinenko and Litvinenko's lawyer composed the statement in Russian on 21 November and translated it to English.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://svobodanews.ru/Article/2006/11/28/20061128185243507.html An interview with Andrei Nekrasov by Yury Veksler], [[Radio Liberty]], 28 November 2006.</ref> Critics have doubted that Litvinenko is the true author of the released statement.<ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/investigation/article3098756/?print Soviet Moonwalker is Guilty for Litvinenko Death? Strange Litvinenko Last Will], [[Izvestia]], 27 November 2006</ref><ref>[http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/PatrickJBuchanan/2006/11/27/is_putin_being_set_up Is Putin being set up?], Townhall.com, 27 November 2006</ref><ref>{{cite web
| last = Dunkerley
| first = William
| title = The Essence of the Alexander Litvinenko Story
| publisher = [[Russia Profile]]
| date = 25 May 2007
| url = http://www.russiaprofile.org/page.php?pageid=Politics&articleid=a1180613251
| accessdate = 2008-11-13 }} ([http://www.webcitation.org/5cIiBpm2S Archived] at [[WebCite]]</ref> When asked about the Litvinenko accusations, Putin said that a statement released after death of its author "naturally deserves no comment", and stated his belief it was being used for political purposes.<ref>{{cite web
| title = Ex-spy's death should not be used for provocation&nbsp;— Putin
| publisher = [[Novosti]]
| date = 24 November 2006
| url = http://en.rian.ru/russia/20061124/55967399.html
| accessdate = 2006-11-26 }}</ref><ref name="ru-eu-summit-November-2006-conf">{{cite web
| title = Press Conferences, Meetings with the Press, Press Statements
| publisher = [[Kremlin]]
| date = 24 November 2006
| url = http://kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2006/11/24/2355_type82914type82915_114506.shtml
| accessdate = 2006-11-26 }}</ref> Contradicting his previous claim, Goldfarb later stated that Litvinenko instructed him to write a note "in good English" in which Putin was to be accused of his poisoning. Goldfarb also stated that he read the note to Litvinenko in English and Russian, to which he claims Litvinenko agreed "with every word of it" and signed it.<ref>{{cite news
| last = Jordan
| first = Mary
| title = Poisoned Russian Had Sought Entry to U.S., Book Says
| publisher = [[Washington Post]]
| date = 10 June 2007
| url = http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/09/AR2007060901354_pf.html
| accessdate = 2008-11-13 }} ([http://www.webcitation.org/5cIgCG0BR Archived] at [[WebCite]]</ref>

The expulsions were seen as "the biggest rift since the countries expelled each other's diplomats in 1996 after a spying dispute." In response to the situation, Putin stated "I think we will overcome this mini-crisis. Russian-British relations will develop normally. On both the Russian side and the British side, we are interested in the development of those relations." Despite this, British Ambassador [[Tony Brenton]] was told by the [[Russian Foreign Ministry]] that UK diplomats would be given 10 days before they were expelled in response. The Russian government also announced that it would suspend issuing visas to UK officials and froze cooperation on counterterrorism in response to Britain suspending contacts with their [[Federal Security Service]].<ref name="expul"/>

[[Alexander Shokhin]], president of the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs warned that British investors in Russia will "face greater scrutiny from tax and regulatory authorities. [And] They could also lose out in government tenders". Some see the crisis as originating with Britain's decision to grant Putin's former patron, Russian billionaire [[Boris Berezovsky]], political asylum in 2003. Earlier in 2007, Berezovsky had called for the overthrow of Putin.<ref name="expul"/>
[[Image:Bush&Putin33rdG8.jpg|thumb|upright|[[George W. Bush|President Bush]] and [[Putin]] at the [[33rd G8 summit]], June 2007.]]

On 10 December 2007, Russia ordered the [[British Council]] to halt work at its regional offices in what was seen as the latest round of a dispute over the murder of Alexander Litvinenko; Britain said Russia's move was illegal.<ref>{{cite web |title=Russia suspends British Council regional offices |publisher=[[Reuters]] |date=10 December 2007 |url=http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSL1288433020071212?feedType=RSS&feedName=worldNews&rpc=22&sp=true |accessdate=2007-12-12}}</ref>

Following the Peace Mission 2007 military exercises jointly conducted by the [[Shanghai Cooperation Organization|SCO]] member states, Putin announced on 17 August 2007 the resumption on a permanent basis of long-distance patrol flights of Russia's strategic bombers that were suspended in 1992.<ref name="heavy-fighters-statement">[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/08/17/2033_type82915_141812.shtml Press Statement following the Peace Mission 2007 Counterterrorism Exercises and the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit], 17 August 2007, Chelyabinsk Region</ref><ref name="rian-heavy-bombers">[http://en.rian.ru/russia/20070817/72189719.html Russia restores Soviet-era strategic bomber patrols], 17 August 2007, RIA Novosti, Russia</ref> US State Department spokesman [[Sean McCormack]] was quoted as saying in response that "if Russia feels as though they want to take some of these old aircraft out of mothballs and get them flying again, that's their decision."<ref name="rian-heavy-bombers"/> The announcement made during the SCO summit in the light of joint Russian-Chinese military exercises, first-ever in history to be held on Russian territory,<ref name="km-sco-joint-exercises">[http://student.km.ru/view.asp?id=4BD4CBA669F042EAB8331FB653FC38FE&idrubr=5D21D4E03EB74A98AAA30F8F45C5E31E SCO Scares NATO], 8 August 2007, KM.ru</ref> makes some believe that Putin is inclined to set up an anti-[[NATO]] bloc or the Asian version of [[OPEC]].<ref>[http://www.chas-daily.com/win/2007/08/20/v_034.html?r=3 Russia Over Three Oceans], 20 August 2007, "Chas", Latvia</ref> When presented with the suggestion that "Western observers are already likening the SCO to a military organisation that would stand in opposition to NATO", Putin answered that "this kind of comparison is inappropriate in both form and substance".<ref name="heavy-fighters-statement"/> Russian Chief of the General Staff [[Yury Baluyevsky]] was quoted as saying that "there should be no talk of creating a military or political alliance or union of any kind, because this would contradict the founding principles of SCO".<ref name="km-sco-joint-exercises"/>

The resumption of long-distance flights of Russia's strategic bombers was followed by the announcement by Russian Defense Minister [[Anatoliy Serdyukov]] during his meeting with Putin on 5 December 2007, that 11 ships, including the aircraft carrier [[Russian aircraft carrier Admiral Kuznetsov|''Kuznetsov'']], would take part in the first major navy sortie into the Mediterranean since Soviet times.<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/appears/2007/12/05/1940_type63378_153373.shtml Beginning of Meeting with Defense Minister Anatoliy Serdyukov], 5 December 2007, Kremlin.ru</ref> The sortie was to be backed up by 47&nbsp;aircraft, including strategic bombers.<ref>[http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071205/wl_nm/russia_navy_dc_3 Guy Faulconbridge. ''Russian navy to start sorties in Mediterranean''] [[Reuters]] 5 December 2007.</ref> According to Serdyukov, this is an effort to resume regular Russian naval patrols on the world's oceans,<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/printer_friendly_wires/2007Dec05/0,4675,RussiaNavy,00.html Mike Eckel. ''Russian navy group goes to Mediterranean ''] [[Associated Press]] 5 December 2007.</ref> the view that is also supported by Russian media.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://www.vz.ru/news/2007/12/5/129713.html ''Russia's Navy Has Resumed Presence in World Ocean], Vzglyad.ru, 5 December 2007.</ref>

In September 2007, Putin visited [[Indonesia]] and in doing so became the first Russian leader to visit the country in more than 50 years.<ref>[http://www.brtsis.com/rrubb.htm Russia Courts Indonesia]</ref> In the same month, Putin also attended the [[APEC]] meeting held in [[Sydney]], [[Australia]] where he met with [[Australian Prime Minister]] [[John Howard]] and signed a uranium trade deal. This was the first visit by a Russian president to Australia.

On 16 October 2007 Putin visited [[Iran]] to participate in the Second Caspian Summit in [[Tehran]],<ref name="rbc-iran-tehran">[http://top.rbc.ru/politics/16/10/2007/122607.shtml Putin: Iran Has Right to Develop Peaceful Nuclear Programme], 16 October 2007, Rbc.ru</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Putin's warning to the U.S. |publisher=Reuters |date=16 October 2007 |url=http://www.webcastr.com/videos/news/putins-warning-to-the-us.html}}</ref> where he met with [[President of Iran|Iranian President]] [[Mahmoud Ahmadinejad]]<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/text/news/2007/10/148432.shtml Putin Positive on Second Caspian Summit Results, Meets With Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad], 16 October 2007, Kremlin.ru</ref>. Other participants were leaders of [[Azerbaijan]], [[Kazakhstan]], and [[Turkmenistan]].<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/events/chron/2007/10/148247.shtml Visit to Iran. Second Caspian Summit], 15-16 October 2007, Kremlin.ru</ref> This is the first visit of a Soviet or Russian leader to Iran since [[Joseph Stalin]]'s participation in the [[Tehran Conference]] in 1943.<ref>[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article2666142.ece Vladimir Putin defies assassination threats to make historic visit to Tehran], 16 October 2007, ''The Times''.</ref> At a press conference after the summit Putin said that "all our (Caspian) states have the right to develop their peaceful nuclear programmes without any restrictions".<ref>[http://president.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/10/16/2020_type82914type82915_148460.shtml Answer to a Question at the Joint Press Conference Following the Second Caspian Summit], 16 October 2007, Tehran, Kremlin.ru</ref> During the summit it was also agreed that its participants, under no circumstances, would let any third-party state use their territory as a base for aggression or military action against any other participant.<ref name="rbc-iran-tehran"/>

On 26 October 2007, at a press conference following the 20th [[Russia–EU Summit]] in [[Portugal]], Putin proposed creating a Russian-European Institute for Freedom and Democracy headquartered either in Brussels or in one of the European capitals, and added that "we are ready to supply funds for financing it, just as Europe covers the costs of projects in Russia".<ref>[http://kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/10/26/1918_type82914type82915_149706.shtml Press Statement and Answers to Questions following the 20th Russia-European Union Summit], 26 October 2007, Mafra, Portugal, Kremlin.ru</ref> This newly proposed institution is expected to monitor human rights violations in Europe and contribute to development of European democracy.<ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/politic/article3109784/ Russia Will Finance European Democracy], 29 October 2007, Izvestia.ru</ref>

Vladimir Putin strongly opposes the secession of [[Kosovo]] from [[Serbia]]. He called any support for this act "immoral" and "illegal".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-02/14/content_7604675.htm |title=Putin: supports for Kosovo unilateral independence "immoral, illegal" |publisher=Xinhua |date=2008-02-14 |accessdate=2008-02-25}}</ref> He described Kosovo's declaration of independence a "terrible precedent" that will come back to hit the West "in the face".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=44275&sectionid=351020602 |title=Putin: Kosovo case terrible precedent |publisher=Press TV |date=2008-02-22 |accessdate=2008-02-25}}</ref> He stated that the Kosovo precedent will ''de facto'' destroy the whole system of international relations, developed not over decades, but over centuries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.irna.ir/en/news/view/menu-239/0802233413164912.htm |title=EU's Solana rejects Putin's criticism over Kosovo's independence |publisher=IRNA |date=2008-02-23 |accessdate=2008-02-25}}</ref>

Another neoconservative [[Robert Kagan]], reflecting on what underlay the fundamental rift between Putin's Russia and the EU wrote in February 2008: " Europe's nightmares are the 1930s; Russia's nightmares are the 1990s. Europe sees the answer to its problems in transcending the nation-state and power. For Russians, the solution is in restoring them. So what happens when a 21st-century entity faces the challenge of a 19th-century power? The contours of the conflict are already emerging—in diplomatic stand-offs over Kosovo, Ukraine, Georgia and Estonia; in conflicts over gas and oil pipelines; in nasty diplomatic exchanges between Russia and Britain; and in a return to Russian military exercises of a kind not seen since the Cold War. Europeans are apprehensive, with good reason."<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/05/AR2008020502879.html New Europe, Old Russia.] By [[Robert Kagan]] ''[[The Washington Post]]'' 6 February 2008.</ref>

Talks on a new Partnership and Co-operation Agreement (PCA), signed in 1997, remained stymied till the end of Putin's presidency due to vetos by Poland and later [[Lithuania]].<ref>[http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11293629 ''Divide, rule or waffle''] [[The Economist]] 1 May 2008.</ref>

A [[Russia–Ukraine gas disputes|January 2009 dispute]] led [[state owned|state-controlled]] Russian company [[Gazprom]] to halt its deliveries of [[natural gas]] to Ukraine.<ref>[http://www.ukranews.com/eng/article/172781.html Russia’s Prime Minister Putin: Yuschenko Recalled Naftohaz Ukrainy’s Delegation From Talks With Gazprom On December 31], Ukrainian News Agency (January 8, 2009)</ref> During the crisis, Putin hinted that [[Ukraine]] is run by criminals who cannot solve economic problems.<ref>{{Cite news
| title = Putin: Ukraine run by criminals who can't solve economic problems
| publisher = Kyiv Post
| date = 2009-01-08
| url = http://www.kyivpost.com/nation/32895
| accessdate = 2009-01-08}}
</ref>

==Premiership (since 2008)==
[[Image:Vladimir Putin 11 March 2008-1.jpg|left|thumb|Vladimir Putin with [[Dmitry Medvedev]]]]
{{Main|Vladimir Putin's Second Cabinet}}
Vladimir Putin was appointed Prime Minister of Russia on May 8, 2008.

On July 24-25, 2008, Putin accused the [[Mechel]] company of selling resources to Russia at higher prices than those charged to foreign countries and claimed that it had been avoiding taxes by using foreign subsidiaries to sell its products internationally. The Prime Minister's attack on Mechel resulted in sharp decline of its stock value and contributed to the [[2008 Russian financial crisis]].<ref name=NYT>{{cite news
| title= Putin’s Criticism Puts a $6 Billion Hole in a Company
| url= http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/26/business/worldbusiness/26steel.html
| last= Kramer
| first= Andrew E.
| date= July 26, 2008
| publisher= [[The New York Times]]
| accessdate= 2008-08-10
}}</ref><ref>{{cite news
| title= Fresh criticism by Putin sends Mechel shares tumbling again
| url= http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/fresh-criticism-putin-sends-mechel/story.aspx?guid=%7B8C4B2044-12EA-4F2A-A20B-5E640B836CA2%7D&dist=msr_9
| last= Lesova
| first= Polya
| date= July 28, 2008
| publisher= [[MarketWatch]]
| accessdate= 2008-08-10
}}</ref><ref>[[Andrei Illarionov]]. [http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1016/42/371419.htm Fighting Financial Fires With Blini]. ''[[The Moscow Times]]'', October 3, 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/financial-turmoil-accelerates-russia/story.aspx?guid=%7BAD559BFE%2D5E6C%2D4033%2D87C6%2D36EA9D4DFA18%7D Financial turmoil accelerates in Russia], MarketWatch, September 17, 2008.</ref>

In August 2008 Putin accused the US of provoking the [[2008 South Ossetia war]], arguing that US citizens were present in the area of the conflict following their leaders' orders to the benefit of one of the two [[United States presidential election, 2008|presidential candidates]]. <ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7586605.stm Putin blames US for Georgia role], [[BBC]], [[2008-08-28]]. Accessed [[2008-08-29]].</ref>.

In December 2008, car owners and traders from [[Vladivostok]] and other regions protested against highly unpopular new duties and regulations on the import of foreign-made used cars (the tariff hike was introduced by Putin in violation of the international commitments undertaken by Medvedev at the [[2008 G-20 Washington summit|G20 Summit]] in November 2008<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/593d1b22-d513-11dd-b967-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1 |title=Bad start for new Bretton Woods |publisher=[[Financial Times]]|date=December 28, 2008|accessdate=2008-12-31}}</ref>), one of the slogans being "Putin, resign!"<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/usDollarRpt/idUSLG67630320081216?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=10272&sp=true Car duty protests challenge Russia's Putin] REUTERS Dec 16. 2008</ref> This was seen as the first visible public anger at one of the government's responses to [[2008 Russian financial crisis|the crisis]].<ref name="Teflon">{{cite web|url=http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/600/42/373358.htm |title=Putin's Teflon Image Takes Hit |publisher=[[The Moscow Times]]|date=December 23, 2008|accessdate=2008-09-23}}</ref> The following month, the protests continued, with the slogans having become of a mostly political nature.<ref>{{ru icon}} {{cite web|url=http://kommersant.ru/doc.aspx?DocsID=1101263 |title=Автомобилисты спешились под знамена|publisher=[[Kommersant]]|date=January 11, 2009|accessdate=2009-01-12}}</ref>

On February 5, 2009, Russia's [[liberal democracy|liberal democratic]] [[list of political parties in Russia|political movement]], citing the regime's "total helplessness and flagrant incompetence"<ref name="Darnost">{{cite web|url=http://newsru.com/russia/06feb2009/plans.html|title="Солидарность": борьба с экономическим кризисом должна начаться с "демонтажа путинизма"|publisher=[[NEWSru.com]]|date=6 February, 2009|accessdate=2009-02-07}}</ref><ref name="ResignDecl"> [http://www.democrat-info.ru/2009/02/05/zayavlenie-byuro-solidarnosti-pervoocherednyie-meryi-ekonomicheskoy-politiki-v-usloviyah-krizisa/ Заявление Бюро движения “Солидарность”] democrat-info.ru February 5, 2009.</ref> maintained that "the dismantling of [[Putinism]]" and restoration of democracy in Russia were prerequisites for any successful anti-crisis measures and demanded that Putin's government resign.<ref name="Darnost"/><ref name="ResignDecl"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKTRE5154RB20090206|title=Opposition says Russia's main economic problem is Putin|publisher=[[Reuters]]|date=February 6, 2009|accessdate=2009-02-12}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/1010/42/374362.htm |title=Opposition Says the Problem Is Putin|publisher=[[The Moscow Times]]|date=January 9, 2009|accessdate=2009-02-12}}</ref> The Russian government's anti-crisis measures have been praised by the World Bank, which said in its Russia Economic Report from November 2008: "prudent fiscal management and substantial financial reserves have protected Russia from deeper consequences of this external shock. The government’s policy response so far—swift, comprehensive, and coordinated—has helped limit the impact."<ref name="worldbankreports">[http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/RUSSIANFEDERATIONEXTN/0,,contentMDK:20888536~menuPK:2445695~pagePK:1497618~piPK:217854~theSitePK:305600,00.html Russian Economic Reports]</ref>

On June 9, 2009, after 16 years of slowly progressing accession talks with the [[World Trade Organization]], which, according to the [[European Union]], might be completed by the end of the year, Vladimir Putin announced that Russia withdrew from the negotiations and instead would make a new joint bid with [[Belarus]] and [[Kazakhstan]]. Senior Kremlin officials had earlier signalled, that Russia was losing patience with Western promises to let it join.<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE5594QZ20090610 Ex-Soviet pact may delay Russia WTO bid
] Reuters 2009-06-10</ref><ref>[http://www.moscowtimes.ru/article/600/42/378346.htm Putin Ditches Unilateral WTO Bid] Moscow Times 2009-06-10</ref>

==Support and popularity==
[[File:Putin Approval Rating 2000-2008.PNG|left|thumb|upright|Putin's approval (blue) and disapproval (red) ratings during his eight year presidency.<ref>[http://www.levada.ru/prezident.html Putin's approval ratings 2000-2008] [[Levada Center]] Retrieved on May 22, 2009</ref>]]
According to public opinion surveys conducted by [[Levada Center]], Putin's approval rating was 81% in June 2007, and the highest of any leader in the world.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/6265068.stm Russia's economic might: spooky or soothing?]</ref> His popularity rose from 31% in August 1999 to 80% in November 1999 and since then it has never fallen below 65%.<ref>[http://www.russiavotes.org/president/putin_performance_trends.php Putin's performance in office - Trends]</ref> Observers see Putin's high approval ratings as a consequence of the significant improvements in living standards and Russia's reassertion of itself on the world scene that occurred during his tenure as President.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/05/AR2007100501672.html Putin Cements His Grip], 6 October 2007, The Washington Post</ref><ref>[http://www.oprosy.info/news.php?extend.25 Quarter of Russians Think Living Standards Improved During Putin's Rule], Oprosy.info, 27 March 2007</ref><ref>[http://www.rbcdaily.ru/2007/10/11/focus/297786 Living Standards of Russians Improved], 10 October 2007, RBC Daily</ref> Most Russians are also deeply disillusioned with the West after all the hardships of 90s,<ref name="norman_stone_timesonline">[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/guest_contributors/article2994651.ece No wonder they like Putin] by [[Norman Stone]], 4 December 2007, The Times</ref><ref name="disillusioned"/> and they no longer trust pro-western politicians associated with Yeltsin that were removed from the political scene under Putin's leadership.<ref name="disillusioned">[http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article1844508.ece Putin the Terrible, we love you], 27 May 2007, ''The Sunday Times''</ref>

In early 2005, a youth organization called [[Nashi (Ours)|Nashi]] (meaning 'Ours' or 'Our Own People') was created in Russia, which positions itself as a democratic, anti-fascist organization. Its creation was encouraged by some of the most senior figures in the Administration of the President,<ref name="Hammershlag">{{cite news |title=Putin's children |author=Michael Hammerschlag |date=5 July 2007 |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/07/05/opinion/edhammer.php |publisher=International Herald Tribune}}</ref> and by 2007 it grew to some 120,000 members (between the ages of 17 and 25). One of Nashi's major stated aims was to prevent a repeat of the 2004 [[Orange Revolution]] during the Russian elections: as its leader [[Vasily Yakemenko]] said, "the enemies must not perform unconstitutional takeovers".<ref>[http://gzt.ru/society/2006/01/26/214345.html Interview with Vasily Yakemenko], Gzt. Ru, 26 January 2006</ref> Kremlin adviser, Sergei Markov said about the activists of Nashi: "They want Russia to be a modern, strong and free country... Their ideology is clear&nbsp;— it is modernization of the country and preservation of its sovereignty with that."<ref>[http://www.svoboda.org/ll/grani/0405/ll.041905-1.asp Discussion of speech freedom at Russian Radio Freedom], 19 April 2005</ref>

A joint poll by ''World Public Opinion'' in the U. S. and NGO&nbsp;Levada Center&nbsp;<ref>http://www.levada.ru/eng/opisanie.html</ref> in Russia around June–July 2006 stated that "neither the Russian nor the American publics are convinced Russia is headed in an anti-democratic direction" and "Russians generally support Putin’s concentration of political power and strongly support the re-nationalization of Russia’s oil and gas industry." Russians generally support the political course of Putin and his team.<ref name="wpo_org_g8">[http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/breuropera/224.php?nid=&id=&pnt=224&lb=breu Russians Support Putin’s Re-Nationalization of Oil, Control of Media, But See Democratic Future] - World Public Opinion.org</ref> A 2005 survey showed that three times as many Russians felt the country was "more democratic" under Putin than it was during the Yeltsin or Gorbachev years, and the same proportion thought human rights were better under Putin than Yeltsin.<ref>[http://www.npetro.net/resources/opendemocracy.pdf Russia through the looking-glass] [[openDemocracy]] Retrieved on 16 April 2008</ref>.

Putin was ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine's [[Person of the Year]] for 2007<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1690766,00.html Person of the Year 2007.] by [[Adi Ignatius]] [[Time (magazine)|Time]]</ref><ref>[http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1696150,00.html Choosing Order Before Freedom] by [[Richard Stengel]] [[Time (magazine)|Time]] 31 December 2007.</ref>, given the title for his "extraordinary feat of leadership in taking a country that was in chaos and bringing it stability".<ref>[http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5giPpGOm3eUzCj6KUfXpxa36kD1bgD8TKHD280 Putin Named Time "Person of the Year"] Google News</ref> ''Time'' said that "TIME's Person of the Year is not and never has been an honor. It is not an endorsement. It is not a popularity contest. At its best, it is a clear-eyed recognition of the world as it is and of the most powerful individuals and forces shaping that world—for better or for worse". The choice provoked sarcasm from one of Russia's opposition leaders, Garry Kasparov,<ref>[http://online.wsj.com/article/SB119828977548646431.html ''Man of the Year?''] by [[Garry Kasparov]] [[The Wall Street Journal]] 22 December 2007.</ref> who recalled that [[Adolf Hitler]] had been ''Time'''s Man of the Year in 1938, and an overwhelmingly negative reaction from the magazine's readership.<ref>[http://time-blog.com/talkback/poy2007.php Did we get it right?] Time's talkback.</ref>

On 4 December 2007, at [[Harvard University]], [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] credited Putin with having "pulled Russia out of chaos" and said he was "assured a place in history", "despite Gorbachev's acknowledgment that the news media have been suppressed and that election rules run counter to the democratic ideals he has promoted".<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/12/04/AR2007120402218.html Gorbachev Applauds Putin's Achievements.] By [[Doug Struck]] [[The Washington Post]] 5 December 2007.</ref>

In August 2007, photographs of Putin were taken while he was vacationing in the Siberian mountains. The Russian tabloid ''[[Komsomolskaya Pravda]]'' published a huge colour photo of the bare-chested president under the headline: "Be Like Putin."<ref>[http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2007/08/22/putin-shirtless.html "Putin gone wild: Russia abuzz over pics of shirtless leader."]</ref>

Putin's name and image are widely used in advertisement and product branding. Among the Putin-branded products are [[Putinka]] vodka, [[PuTin (brand)|PuTin]] brand of canned food, [[caviar]] ''Gorbusha Putina'', [[Denis Simachev]]'s collection of T-shirts decorated by images of Putin, etc.<ref>[http://www.gazeta.spb.ru/12122-0/ Как используется бренд "Путин": зажигалки, икра, футболки, консервированный перец] [[Gazeta]] [[30 November]] [[2007]] {{ru icon}} </ref>

In April 2008, Putin was put on the ''Time'' [[Time 100|100 most influential people in the world]] list.<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1733748_1733757_1735578,00.html Vladimir Putin] by [[Madeleine Albright]] [[Time (magazine)]] Retrieved on 1 May 2008</ref> [[Madeleine Albright]] wrote: "After our first meetings, in 1999 and 2000, I described him in my journal as "shrewd, confident, hard-working, patriotic, and ingratiating." In the years since, he has become more confident and&nbsp;— to Westerners&nbsp;— decidedly less ingratiating." She added "It is unlikely that Putin, 55, will wear out his welcome at home anytime soon, as he has nearly done with many democracies abroad. In the meantime, he will remain an irritant to [[NATO]], a source of division within Europe and yet another reason for the West to reduce its reliance on fossil fuels."

==Criticism==
{{See also|Criticism of Vladimir Putin}}
Putin has also been the target of much criticism. Several government actions made under Putin’s presidency have been criticized by some independent Russian media outlets and many Western commentators as anti-democratic.<ref> [http://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/15/international/europe/15russia.html?ex=1252900800&en=e5ff9ecdaef537d9&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland From Those Putin Would Weaken, Praise]</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/world/europe/22russia.html?pagewanted=print 50% Good News Is the Bad News in Russian Radio]</ref><ref>[http://www.carnegieendowment.org/events/index.cfm?fa=eventDetail&id=745 Russian Media Criticism of Vladimir Putin: Evidence and Significance]</ref>.

In 2007, "[[Dissenters' March]]es" were organized by the opposition group [[Other Russia]],<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/10/world/europe/10kasparov.html?ex=1331182800&en=2f3ff57730367a82&ei=5088&partner=rssnyt&emc=rss Kasparov, Building Opposition to Putin]</ref> led by former chess champion [[Garry Kasparov]] and national-Bolshevist leader [[Eduard Limonov]]. Following prior warnings, demonstrations in several Russian cities were met by police action, which included interfering with the travel of the protesters and the arrests of as many as 150 people who attempted to break through police lines.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7110910.stm BBC News | Europe | [[Garry Kasparov]] jailed over rally<!--Bot generated title-->]</ref><ref>[http://www.independent.co.uk/news/europe/putin-moves-against-kasparov-and-the-white-knight-revolution-444788.html Putin moves against Kasparov and the 'white knight' revolution]</ref> The Dissenters' Marches have received little support among the Russian general public, according to popular polls. <ref>[http://www.regnum.ru/news/district-volga/kostroma/851572.html VCIOM: Dissenters' Marches Do Not Interest Russians], Regnum.ru, 3 July 2007</ref> The Dissenters' March in Samara held in May 2007 during the Russia-EU summit attracted more journalists providing coverage of the event than actual participants.<ref>[http://www.rian.ru/society/20070518/65712907.html There Were Fewer Dissenters' March Participants Than Journalists], RIA News Agency, 18 May 2007</ref> When asked in what way the Dissenters' Marches bother him, Putin answered that such marches "shall not prevent other citizens from living a normal life".<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/05/18/2256_type82914type82915_129689.shtml Joint press conference after Russia-EU summit], Samara, 18 May 2007</ref> During the Dissenters' March in Saint Petersburg on 3 March 2007, the protesters blocked automobile traffic on Nevsky Prospect, the central street of the city, much to the disturbance of local drivers.<ref>[http://www.izvestia.ru/news/news128585 100 People Arrested During Dissenters' March in Saint Petersburg], Izvestia, 5 March 2007</ref><ref name="matvienko">[http://www.rg.ru/2007/03/05/piter-marsh.html Guests from Moscow], RG.ru, 5 March 2007</ref> The Governor of [[Saint Petersburg]], [[Valentina Matvienko]], commented on the event that "it is important to give everyone the opportunity to criticize the authorities, but this should be done in a civilized fashion".<ref name="matvienko"/> When asked about Kasparov's arrest, Putin replied that during his arrest Kasparov was speaking English rather than Russian, and suggested that he was targeting a Western audience rather than his own people.<ref name="time_manazine_dec_19_2007_en">[http://president.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/12/19/1618_type82916_154779.shtml Interview with Time Magazine], published on 19 December 2007, Kremlin.ru (in English)</ref><ref name="time_manazine_dec_19_2007_ru">[http://president.kremlin.ru/appears/2007/12/19/1607_type63379_154772.shtml Interview with Time Magazine], published on 19 December 2007, Kremlin.ru (in Russian)</ref> Putin has said that some domestic critics are being funded and supported by foreign enemies who would prefer to see a weak Russia.<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/11/21/putin.criticizes.ap/ Putin attacks the West, opponents]</ref> In his speech at the [[United Russia]] meeting in [[Luzhniki]]: "Those who oppose us don't want us to realize our plan.... They need a weak, sick state! They need a disorganized and disoriented society, a divided society, so that they can do their deeds behind its back and eat cake on our tab."<ref>[http://www.kommersant.com/p828086/election_campaigning/ Unity of Forum and Content]</ref>.

In July 2007, [[Bret Stephens]] of ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' wrote: "Russia has become, in the precise sense of the word, a fascist state. It does not matter here, as the Kremlin's apologists are so fond of pointing out, that Mr. Putin is wildly popular in Russia: Popularity is what competent despots get when they destroy independent media, stoke nationalistic fervor with military buildups and the cunning exploitation of the Church, and ride a wave of petrodollars to pay off the civil service and balance their budgets. Nor does it matter that Mr. Putin hasn't re-nationalized the "means of production" outright; corporatism was at the heart of Hitler's economic policy, too." <ref>[http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118463398015768385.html?mod=googlenews_wsj "For the Sake of One Man".] By Bret Stephens [[Wall Street Journal]] 17 July 2007.</ref>

In its January 2008 World Report, [[Human Rights Watch]] wrote in the section devoted to Russia: "As parliamentary and presidential elections in late 2007 and early 2008 approached, the administration headed by President Vladimir Putin cracked down on civil society and freedom of assembly. Reconstruction in Chechnya did not mask grave human rights abuses including torture, abductions, and unlawful detentions. International criticism of Russia’s human rights record remains muted, with the European Union failing to challenge Russia on its human rights record in a consistent and sustained manner."<ref>[http://hrw.org/englishwr2k8/docs/2008/01/31/russia17710.htm Russia. Events of 2007] [[Human Rights Watch]] website</ref> The organization called President Putin a "repressive" and "brutal" leader on par with the leaders of Zimbabwe and Pakistan.<ref>[http://www.themoscowtimes.com/stories/2008/02/04/015.html Rights Group Calls Putin a 'Brutal' Leader.] [[The Moscow Times]] 4 February 2008. Issue 3834. Page 5.</ref>

On 28 January 2008, [[Gorbachev]] in his interview to [[Interfax]]<ref>[http://www.gorby.ru/rubrs.asp?art_id=25878&rubr_id=21&page=1 Горбачев считает, что избирательная система в РФ нуждается в совершенствовании.] M.&nbsp;Gorbachev's interview on The Gorbachev Foundation website.</ref> "sharply criticized the state of Russia’s electoral system and called for extensive reforms to a system that has secured power for President Vladimir V. Putin and the Kremlin’s inner circle."<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/world/europe/29russia.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin ''Gorbachev, Rebuking Putin, Criticizes Russian Elections.''] By C. J. Chivers [[New York Times]] 29 January 2008.</ref> Following Gorbachev's interview ''[[The Washington Post]]'''s editorial said: "No wonder that Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet Union's last leader, felt moved to speak out. "Something wrong is going on with our elections", he told the Interfax agency. But it's not only elections: In fact, the system that Mr. Gorbachev took apart is being meticulously reconstructed."<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/29/AR2008012902965.html?sub=AR A Potemkin Election. Russia's presidential campaign takes on a distinctly Soviet flavor.] [[The Washington Post]] 30 January 2008.</ref>

Corruption under Putin has increased and assumed "systemic and institutionalised form", according to a report by opposition leader [[Boris Nemtsov]] as well as other sources.<ref>[http://www.nemtsov.ru/docs/putin-itogi.pdf ''Независимый экспертеый доклад «Путин. Итоги»''] Experts' report by [[Boris Nemtsov]] and [[Vladimir Milov]] released in February 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.finiz.ru/cfin/tmpl-art/id_art-937000 За четыре года мздоимство в России выросло почти в десять раз (''Bribe-taking in Russia has increased by nearly ten times'')] ''Финансовые известия'' July 21, 2005.</ref><ref>[http://www.voanews.com/english/archive/2006-07/2006-07-13-voa25.cfm Energy Revenues and Corruption Increase in Russia] [[Voice of America]] 13 July 2006.</ref><ref>[http://gazeta.aif.ru/online/aif/1290/04_01 Чума-2005: коррупция] [[Argumenty i Fakty]] № 29 (1290) July 2005</ref><ref>[http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2005/07/C6FC8C8F-C942-4D9F-897B-564EE730990E.html Russia: Bribery Thriving Under Putin, According To New Report] [[Radio Liberty]] July 22, 2005</ref><ref>[http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/dec/21/russia.topstories3 Putin, the Kremlin power struggle and the $40bn fortune] [[The Guardian]] Dec 21, 2007</ref>

==Family and personal life==
[[Image:Vladimir Putin with Lyudmila Putin-1.jpg|thumb|Vladimir Putin and [[Lyudmila Putina]] after his inauguration in May 2000.]]
[[Image:Vladimir Putin 5 May 2002-3.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Putin attending an Easter service at the [[Cathedral of Christ the Saviour]] on 5 May 2002.]]
[[Image:Vladimir Putin speech to IOC in Guatemala City.ogg|thumb|right|Vladimir Putin addressing the International Olympic Committee in Guatemala City in 2007.]]
On 28 July 1983 Putin married [[Kaliningrad]]-born [[Lyudmila Putina|Lyudmila Shkrebneva]], at that time an undergraduate student of the Spanish branch of the [[Philology]] Department of the [[Saint Petersburg State University|Leningrad State University]] and a former [[Aeroflot]] [[flight attendant]]. They have two daughters, [[Maria Putina]] (born 1985 in [[St. Petersburg, Russia|St. Petersburg]]) and [[Yekaterina Putina]] (born 1986 in [[Dresden]]). The daughters grew up in [[East Germany]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sptimes.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=7815 |date=August 9, 2002 |publisher=''[[The St. Petersburg Times]]'' |title=Putin's Girls Having La Dolce Vita Break |accessdate=February 13, 2009 |first=Oksana |last=Yablokova }}</ref> and attended the [[German School in Moscow]] until his appointment as Prime Minister. After that they studied [[international economics]] at the [[Finance Academy under the Government of RF|Finance Academy]] in [[Moscow]] (very famous Russian university for economics and finance degrees), although it was not officially reported due to security reasons. Putin also owns a black [[Labrador Retriever]] named [[Koni (dog)|Koni]], who has been known to accompany him into staff meetings and greeting world leaders.

Since 1992, Putin has owned a [[dacha]] on the eastern shore of the [[Komsomolskoye Lake]] in [[Solovyovka]], [[Priozersky District]] in [[Leningrad Oblast]]. On 10 November 1996, Putin and his neighbours instituted the [[cooperative]] [[Ozero]] which united their properties. This was confirmed by Putin's income and property declaration as a nominee for the Presidency in 2000.<ref name="successor"/> However, this real estate was not listed in his income and property declaration for 1998–2002 submitted before the 2004 elections.<ref>{{ru icon}} [http://pr2004.cikrf.ru/etc/putin.doc Full text of the declaration]</ref>

Putin's father was "a model communist, genuinely believing in its ideals while trying to put them into practice in his own life." With this dedication he became secretary of the Party cell in his workshop and then after taking night classes joined the factory’s Party bureau.<ref>{{ref harvard|Sakwa2008|Sakwa, ''Putin: Russia’s choice'' pp 3|c}}</ref> Though his father was a "militant atheist",<ref name="Colton">{{cite book |title=Popular Choice and Managed Democracy: the Russian elections of 1999 and 2000 |author=Timothy J. Colton, Michael MacFaul |date=2003 |publisher=The Brookings Institution |location=Washington DC}}</ref> Putin's mother "was a devoted Orthodox believer". Though she kept no [[icon]]s at home, she attended church regularly, despite the government's persecution of the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] at that time. She ensured that Putin was secretly christened as a baby and she regularly took him to services. His father knew of this but turned a blind eye.<ref>{{ref harvard|Sakwa2008|Sakwa, ''Putin: Russia’s choice'' pp 3|d}}</ref> According to Putin's own statements, his religious awakening followed the serious car crash of his wife in 1993, and was deepened by a life-threatening fire that burned down their dacha in August 1996.<ref name="Colton"/><ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0009/08/lkl.00.html Russian President Vladimir Putin Discusses Domestic and Foreign Affairs] [[Larry King Live]], 8 September 2000.</ref> Right before an official visit to [[Israel]] his mother gave him his baptismal cross telling him to get it blessed “I did as she said and then put the cross around my neck. I have never taken it off since.”<ref>{{ref harvard|Sakwa2008|Sakwa, ''Putin: Russia’s choice'' pp 3|e}}</ref> Putin repeated the story to [[George W. Bush]] in June 2001, which might have inspired Bush to make his remark that he had "got a sense of Putin's soul".<ref name="clinton_says_putin_has_no_soul">[http://www.sptimes.ru/index.php?action_id=2&story_id=24661 Clinton: Putin Has No Soul.] [[Reuters]] report via [[The Saint Petersburg Times]] Issue #1337 (1) 9 January 2008.</ref> <ref>[http://www.moscowtimes.ru/stories/2008/02/12/001-print.html ''Piety's Comeback as a Kremlin Virtue''.] By Alexander Osipovich [[The Moscow Times]] 12 February 2008. Page 1.</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/1392791.stm Bush and Putin: Best of friends.] [[BBC]] 16 June 2001.</ref> When asked whether he believes in God during his interview with ''[[Time]]'', he responded saying: "... There are things I believe, which should not in my position, at least, be shared with the public at large for everybody's consumption because that would look like self-advertising or a political striptease."<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/personoftheyear/article/0,28804,1690753_1690757_1695787-3,00.html Putin Q&A: Full Transcript] [[Time Magazine]] Retrieved on 22 March 2008</ref>

Putin speaks German with near-native fluency. His family used to speak German at home as well.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wagner |first=Hans |url=http://www.eurasischesmagazin.de/artikel/?artikelID=20060504 |title=Das Konfliktpotential mit den USA wächst (German) |date=30 June 2006 |accessdate=2007-03-29}}</ref> After becoming President he was reported to be taking English lessons and could be seen conversing directly with Bush and native speakers of English in informal situations, but he continues to use interpreters for formal talks. Putin spoke English in public for the first time during the state dinner in [[Buckingham Palace]] in 2003 saying but a few phrases while delivering his condolences to the [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Queen]].<ref>[http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4188/is_20030625/ai_n11400868 Putin treated royally on historic London visit]</ref> He made a full English speech while addressing delegates at the 119th [[International Olympic Committee]] Session in [[Guatemala City]] on behalf of the successful bid of [[Sochi]] for the [[2014 Winter Olympics]].<ref>http://media.kremlin.ru/2007_07_04_01_01.wmv</ref>

==Personal wealth==
According to the data submitted during the [[Russian legislative election, 2007]], Putin's wealth is limited to approximately 3.7 million [[Russian ruble|rubles]] (approximately $150,000) in bank accounts, a private {{convert|77.4|m2|sqft|sp=us}} apartment in Saint Petersburg, 260 [[shares]] of ''Bank Saint Petersburg'' (with a December 2007 market price $5.36 per share<ref>http://www.quote.ru/fterm/emitent.shtml?49/1249</ref>) and two 1960s [[Volga (automobile)#GAZ-21|Volga M21]] cars that he inherited from his father and does not [[vehicle registration|register]] for on-road use. Putin's 2006 income totalled 2 million rubles (approximately $80,000).<ref>[http://www.rg.ru/2007/10/27/vibori.html ЦИК зарегистрировал список "ЕР"] [[Rossiyskaya Gazeta]] N 4504 27 October 2007 {{ru icon}}</ref> According to the data Putin did not make it into the 100 wealthiest [[Duma]] candidates of his own [[United Russia]] party.<ref>[http://www.vz.ru/politics/2007/10/26/120491.html ЦИК раскрыл доходы Путина] [[Vzglyad]] 26 October 2007</ref>

There have also been allegations that Putin secretly owns a large fortune.
According to former [[Speaker of the Duma|Chairman]] of the Russian [[State Duma]] [[Ivan Rybkin]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Corwin |first=Julie A. |title=''Do not attempt to adjust your set'' |work=RFE/RL Reports |publisher=[[Radio Free Europe]] |date=13 February 2004 |url=http://www.rferl.org/reports/mm/2004/02/3-130204.asp |accessdate=2007-12-10}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ng.ru/politics/2004-02-03/2_rybkin.html |title=''Рыбкин собрал компромат на президента. Экс-глава Совбеза России «рассекречивает» бизнесменов из кремлевского окружения'' |accessdate=2007-12-10 |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=Ирина Романчева |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2004-02-03 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=''Nezavisimaya Gazeta'' newspaper |pages= |language=Russian |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=Now it is Putin who is Russia's biggest business oligarch.}}</ref>, and Russian [[political scientist]] [[Stanislav Belkovsky]]<ref>{{cite web |last=Quiring |first=Von Manfred |title=Warum Putin gar nicht Präsident bleiben will |work= |publisher=[[Die Welt]] |date=12 November 2007 |url=http://www.welt.de/politik/article1352592/Warum_Putin_gar_nicht_Praesident_bleiben_will.html |accessdate=2007-12-04}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jamestown.org/edm/article.php?article_id=2372600 |title=Staniskav Belkovsky: Putin will leave power completely |accessdate=2007-12-06 |accessdaymonth= |accessmonthday= |accessyear= |author=Jonas Bernstein |last= |first= |authorlink= |coauthors= |date=2007-11-19 |year= |month= |format= |work= |publisher=The Jamestown Foundation |pages= |doi= |archiveurl= |archivedate= |quote=}}</ref>, Putin controls a 4.5% stake (approx. $13 billion) in [[Gazprom]], 37% (approx. $20 billion) in [[Surgutneftegaz]] and 50% in the oil-trading company [[Gunvor]] run by [[Gennady Timchenko]], a close friend. Gunvor's turnover in 2007 was $40 billion.<ref name="Assassins">[[Vladimir Pribylovsky]] and [[Yuri Felshtinsky]]. ''The Age of Assassins. The Rise and Rise of Vladimir Putin'', [[Gibson Square Books]], London, 2008, ISBN 190-614207-6; pages 299-300.</ref><ref>[http://www.wps.ru/en/pp/story/2007/03/12.html Gennadi Timchenko: Russia's most low-profile billionaire] ''Sobesednik'' № 10, 7 March 2007</ref><ref>[http://newsru.com/finance/01nov2007/gunvor.html Миллиардер Тимченко, "друг Путина", стал одним из крупнейших в мире продавцов нефти.] NEWSru.com 1 ноября 2007 г.</ref>. The aggregate estimated value of these holdings would easily make Putin Russia's richest person. In December 2007, Belkovsky elaborated on his claims: "Putin's name doesn't appear on any shareholders' register, of course. There is a non-transparent scheme of successive ownership of offshore companies and funds. The final point is in [[Zug]] [[Switzerland]] and [[Liechtenstein]]. Vladimir Putin should be the beneficiary owner."<ref name=Guardian_40bn/> This claim, however, has never been supported with evidence.<ref name="nbc"/>

When asked at a press conference on 14 February 2008 whether he was the richest person in Europe, as some newspapers claimed; and if so, to state the source of his wealth, Putin said "This is true. I am the richest person not only in Europe, but also in the world. I collect emotions. And I am rich in that respect that the people of Russia have twice entrusted me with leadership of such a great country as Russia. I consider this to be my biggest fortune. As for the rumors concerning my financial wealth, I have seen some pieces of paper regarding this. This is plain chatter, not worthy discussion, plain bosh. They have picked this in their noses and have smeared this across their pieces of paper. This is how I view this."<ref name="press_conference_feb_2008">[http://president.kremlin.ru/appears/2008/02/14/1327_type63380type82634_160108.shtml "Что касается различных слухов по поводу денежного состояния, я смотрел некоторые бумажки на этот счёт: просто болтовня, которую нечего обсуждать, просто чушь. Все выковыряли из носа и размазали по своим бумажкам. Вот так я к этому и отношусь." The President's annual press conference for the Russian and foreign media], 14 February 2008, Kremlin.ru</ref>

==Martial arts==
[[Image:Vladimir Putin in Japan 3-5 September 2000-23.jpg|thumb|right|Putin on a [[tatami]] at the [[Kodokan Institute]] in Tokyo on 5 September 2000.]]
One of Putin's favorite sports is the [[martial art]] of [[judo]]. Putin began training in [[Sambo (martial art)|sambo]] (a [[martial art]] that originated in the [[Soviet Union]]) at the age of 14, before switching to judo, which he continues to practice today.<ref>[http://www.npr.org/news/specials/putin/nprinterview.html Vladimir Putin: the NPR interview] U.S. radio station [[National Public Radio]] [[New York]] (15 November 2001)</ref> Putin won competitions in his hometown of [[Saint Petersburg|Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg)]], including the senior championship of Leningrad. He is the President of the [[Yawara Dojo]], the same Saint Petersburg [[dojo]] he practiced at when young. Putin co-authored a book on his favorite sport, published in Russian as ''Judo with Vladimir Putin'' and in English under the title ''[[Judo: History, Theory, Practice]].''<ref>{{cite book |last=Putin |first=Vladimir V. |coauthors=Vasilii Shestakov, Alexey Levitsky, Aleksei Levitskii |year=2004 |month=July | title=Judo: History, Theory, Practice |publisher=North Atlantic Books |isbn=1-55643-445-6 }}</ref>

Though he is not the first world leader to practice judo, Putin is the first leader to move forward into the advanced levels. Currently, Putin holds a 6th [[Dan rank|dan]] ([[Black belt (martial arts)|red/white belt]]) and is best known for his [[Harai Goshi]] (sweeping hip throw). Putin earned [[Master of Sports]] (Soviet and Russian sport title) in [[Judo]] in 1975 and in [[Sambo (martial art)|Sambo]] in 1973. After a state visit to Japan, Putin was invited to the [[Kodokan Institute]] where he showed the students and Japanese officials different judo techniques.<ref name="judo">{{cite web |url=http://www.fightingarts.com/content01/putin.html |title=Presidential Judo |author=Tom Ross |work=FightingArts.com}}</ref>

==Honors==
<!-- removed non-free image with no rationale given for use in this article [[Image:Vladimir Putin Time Man of the Year.jpg|thumb|200px|The ''Time'' magazine's Person of the Year issue for 2007 featured Putin]] -->

*On 12 February 2007 [[Saudi Arabia|Saudi]] [[Abdullah of Saudi Arabia|King Abdullah]] awarded Putin the King Abdul Aziz Award, Saudi Arabia's top civilian decoration.<ref>[http://www.hindu.com/2007/02/20/stories/2007022002561100.htm Putin goes calling on the Saudis] - [[The Hindu]]</ref>
*On 10 September 2007 [[United Arab Emirates|UAE]] President [[Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan]] awarded Putin the [[Order of Zayed]], UAE's top civilian decoration.<ref>{{ru icon}}[http://top.rbc.ru/politics/10/09/2007/117887.shtml Putin Receives Top UAE's Decoration, Order of Zayed], Rbc.ru, 10 September 2007</ref>
*In December 2007 Putin was named [[Person of the Year (Expert magazine)|Person of the Year]] by [[Expert magazine]], influential and respected Russian business weekly.<ref>[http://eng.expert.ru/printissues/expert/2007/48/chelovek_goda/ "A Global Player"] in the ''Expert'' magazine.</ref>
*In September 2006, France's president [[Jacques Chirac]] awarded Vladimir Putin the insignia of ''Grand-Croix'' (Grand Cross) of the [[Légion d'honneur]], the highest French decoration, to celebrate his contribution to the friendship between the two countries. This decoration is usually awarded to the heads of state considered very close to France.<ref>{{fr icon}}[http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xhvhv_chirac-decore-poutine Video Chirac décore Poutine]</ref>

==Key speeches==
During his terms in office Putin has made<ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/sdocs/speeches.shtml?date_to=2008/05/06&stype=70029 Addresses to the Federal Assembly]</ref> eight annual addresses to the [[Federal Assembly of Russia]], speaking on the situation in Russia and on guidelines of the internal and foreign policy of the State (as prescribed in <ref>[http://www.constitution.ru/en/10003000-05.htm Article 84 of the Russian Constitution]</ref> Article 84 of the Constitution). The 2007 election campaign of the [[United Russia]] party went under the slogan "Putin's Plan: Russia's Victory". When asked on the "Putin's plan", Vladimir Putin said the last five Addresses contained some key parts "devoted to the state’s medium-term development", and "if all these key ideas were put together to build a coherent system, it can become the country's development plan in the medium-term". <ref>[http://www.kremlin.ru/eng/speeches/2007/09/14/1801_type82917type84779_144106.shtml Meeting with Members of the Valdai International Discussion Club], September 2007, Kremlin. Ru</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Russia|Nuvola Russian flag.svg}}
*[[Putinism]]
*[[Political groups during Vladimir Putin's presidency]]

==References and notes==
{{reflist|2}}
==Bibliography==
*{{note label|Sakwa2008|a|a}}{{note label|Sakwa2008|b|b}} {{cite book|last=Sakwa|first=Richard|author-link=Richard Sakwa|title=Putin: Russia’s choice|publisher=[[Routledge]]|location=[[Abingdon, Oxfordshire]]|date=2008|edition=2nd|isbn=0203931939}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{commons}}
*[http://www.premier.gov.ru Prime Minister of the Russian Federation {{ru icon}}] [http://premier.gov.ru/eng {{en icon}}]
*[http://www.government.ru/content/ Government of Russia] {{ru icon}}

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[[Category:Vladimir Putin| ]]
[[Category:1952 births]]
[[Category:Acting Presidents of the Russian Federation]]
[[Category:Communist Party of the Soviet Union members]]
[[Category:Beslan school hostage crisis]]
[[Category:Current national leaders]]
[[Category:FSB officers]]
[[Category:KGB officers]]
[[Category:Légion d'honneur recipients]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Moscow theater hostage crisis]]
[[Category:People from Saint Petersburg]]
[[Category:People of the 2008 South Ossetia war]]
[[Category:People of the Chechen wars]]
[[Category:Presidents of the Russian Federation]]
[[Category:20th-century national presidents in Europe]]
[[Category:21st-century national presidents in Europe]]
[[Category:20th-century national presidents in Asia]]
[[Category:21st-century national presidents in Asia]]
[[Category:Prime Ministers of the Russian Federation]]
[[Category:Russian judoka]]
[[Category:Russian Orthodox Christians]]
[[Category:Russian sambo practitioners]]
[[Category:Saint Petersburg State University alumni]]
[[Category:Soviet military personnel]]
[[Category:Time magazine Persons of the Year]]
[[Category:United Russia politicians]]

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Revision as of 08:23, 19 September 2009

Death To Putin.Death to Dictators

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