Vladimir Putin
President of Russia
Background
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is President of Russia, a position he has held since 2012 after an earlier presidential term from 2000 to 2008. He is the central figure in Russian federal executive power and a leading participant in decisions on domestic policy, foreign relations, security, and major state initiatives. Since 2000, he has been widely regarded as the dominant political figure in Russia and one of the most consequential actors in Russian public affairs.
Born in Leningrad, now Saint Petersburg, on 7 October 1952, Putin worked for 16 years as a KGB foreign intelligence officer and reached the rank of lieutenant colonel. He resigned from the KGB in 1991 and entered politics in Saint Petersburg, later moving to Moscow in 1996 to join the administration of President Boris Yeltsin. He served briefly as director of the Federal Security Service and then as secretary of the Security Council of Russia before being appointed prime minister in August 1999.
After Yeltsin resigned, Putin became acting president and won election to his first full presidential term in March 2000, then was reelected in 2004. Owing to constitutional limits, he served again as prime minister from 2008 to 2012 under Dmitry Medvedev before returning to the presidency in 2012 and later being reelected in 2018 and 2024. His tenure has been associated with major events including economic growth in the early 2000s, the second Chechen war, the Russo-Georgian War, the annexation of Crimea, the war in eastern Ukraine, military intervention in Syria, and the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. In 2021 he signed constitutional amendments that allowed him to seek additional terms, and in 2023 the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant related to alleged war crimes during the Ukraine war.
Timeline
Putin thanked Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev for facilitating the evacuation of Russian nationals from Iran and the transit of humanitarian aid.
Telephone Conversation with President of Azerbaijan Ilham AliyevPutin called for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East during his conversation with Aliyev.
Telephone Conversation with President of Azerbaijan Ilham AliyevPutin called UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan to congratulate him on his 65th birthday.
Telephone Conversation with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al NahyanPutin discussed the worsening situation in the Middle East during the call.
Telephone Conversation with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al NahyanPutin thanked the UAE for supporting Russian citizens in the region.
Telephone Conversation with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Documents
Meeting with Minister of Education Sergei Kravtsov
Putin met with Education Minister Kravtsov, who reported Russia's Education Development Strategy is near completion, unified school curricula and history textbooks are being rolled out nationwide, and the country has entered the global top ten in school quality.
Telephone Conversation with UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Putin called UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed to mark his 65th birthday, discussed the deteriorating Middle East situation, and thanked the UAE for supporting Russian citizens there.
Telephone Conversation with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev
Putin thanked Azerbaijani President Aliyev for facilitating the evacuation of Russian nationals from Iran and transit of humanitarian aid, and both leaders called for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East.
Dmitry Chernyshenko Presents the 2025 Government Awards in Tourism
Deputy PM Chernyshenko presented Russia's 2025 Government Tourism Prizes to 10 winning projects across 8 categories, with each laureate receiving 1 million rubles.
President Issues Instruction to Prepare a Decree Awarding the Hero of Russia Title to Sergei Yarashev
Meeting with Head of the Donetsk People's Republic Denis Pushilin
Putin met with DPR head Denis Pushilin to discuss reconstruction progress, with Pushilin reporting that Ukrainian forces now control only 15–17% of DPR territory, down from 25% six months ago.
Meeting on the Situation on the Global Oil and Gas Market
Putin said the Middle East conflict is disrupting oil and gas markets, urged Russian firms to redirect exports from Europe, and told the government and central bank to monitor debt reduction.
Remarks by Yuri Ushakov, Assistant to the President of Russia, Following a Telephone Conversation Between Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump
Putin and Trump held an hour-long call covering the Iran conflict, Ukraine ceasefire prospects, and Venezuela's impact on global oil markets, their first since December 2025.
Congratulations to Russian Women on 8 March
Congratulatory Message to Servicemembers and Veterans of the Special Operations Forces of the Armed Forces of Russia
Putin congratulated Russia's Special Operations Forces on their professional holiday, praising their combat performance and singling out troops conducting missions in the Ukraine war zone.
Meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State
Putin and Lukashenko held the Supreme State Council of the Union State in Moscow, signing a package of documents including directives on mutual legal protection, cross-border rail links, and a new Standardisation and Quality Committee, marking 30 years of Russian-Belarusian integration.