Vladimir Putin has been the dominant figure in Russian politics over the last two decades. His tenure has been marked both by growing concern over the human rights situation in Russia, and fears about the country’s role on the global stage.
With Russian forces having invaded Ukraine, Putin is under mounting pressure both from other governments and anti-war activists in Russia - where there have been growing protests - to end the assault and withdraw his troops. Sanctions are being ramped up.
High-level talks between Ukrainian and Russian diplomats are now set to take place at the Ukraine-Belarus border. But when did Vladimir Putin come to power in Russia - and what did he do before that?
When did Putin come to power?
Vladimir Putin has been President of Russia since 2012, having previously occupied the role from 1999 until 2008. He was the country’s Prime Minister from 1999 to 2000, and then again between 2008 and 2012.
Born in Saint Petersburg (then Leningrad) in 1952, Putin was an intelligence officer before entering Russian politics. His grandfather, Spiridon Putin, worked as a personal cook for both Lenin and Stalin.
In 1999, Putin was appointed as acting Prime Minister by the ailing and increasingly erratic President Boris Yeltsin, who resigned from his own post that December. Yeltsin made it clear that Putin was his preferred successor for the presidency.
Yeltsin was indeed succeeded by Putin as President of Russia, initially as acting President. Putin won the presidential election of March 2000 in the first round, with 53 per cent of the vote.
After serving two terms as President, Putin was forced to stand down in 2008, as the Russian constitution barred him from serving three consecutive terms. He was replaced by Dmitry Medvedev, and returned to his previous position of Prime Minister.
However, Putin was widely regarded to be the real power behind Medvedev’s throne. After Medvedev served a single four-year term as President from 2008 to 2012, he was again replaced in the job by Putin, who has served as President ever since.
What is the KGB?
The KGB was the Soviet Union’s main intelligence and security agency. It was responsible for both internal security functions and intelligence work overseas.
It was officially dissolved in 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed. The KGB was subsequently succeeded by the Federal Security Service, or FSB, which remains Russia’s principal security agency.
Was Putin in the KGB?
Vladimir Putin was a KGB officer before entering Russian politics. He joined the KGB in 1975 and initially worked in counterintelligence, before being transferred to monitor foreigners and diplomatic officials in Leningrad.
Between 1985 and 1990, Putin was posted to Dresden in East Germany, being given a cover identity as a translator. However, little is known about what he actually did during this period, and there are conflicting accounts of how significant - or otherwise - his role was.
According to Putin’s own account, he resigned from the KGB in August 1991, having obtained the rank of lieutenant colonel. In 1998, he was appointed as director of the FSB, the KGB’s successor security and intelligence organisation.
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