Questions relating to Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin, the current President of the Russian Federation, holding the office since 7 May 2012, and before that from 2000 until 2008. He has also served as the Prime Minister in 1999-2000 and 2008-2012. Putin has effectively been the leader of Russia in some fashion since 1999. Use with the [russian-federation] tag.
Putin worked as a KGB foreign intelligence officer for 16 years, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel, before resigning in 1991 to begin a political career in Saint Petersburg. He moved to Moscow in 1996 to join the administration of president Boris Yeltsin. He briefly served as director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and secretary of the Security Council, before being appointed as prime minister in August 1999. After the resignation of Yeltsin, Putin became acting president and, less than four months later, was elected outright to his first term as president. He was reelected in 2004. As he was constitutionally limited to two consecutive terms as president at the time, Putin served as prime minister again from 2008 to 2012 under Dmitry Medvedev. He returned to the presidency in 2012 in an election marred by allegations of fraud and protests and was reelected in 2018. In April 2021, following a referendum, he signed into law constitutional amendments including one that would allow him to run for reelection twice more, potentially extending his presidency to 2036.
Vladimir Putin - Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Putin
