Vlad, the invincible
Vladimir Putin has won a fourth presidential term in Russia, which will keep him in power till 2024. Here's a look at his rise from a city scrapper to arguably one of the most powerful men in the world
1952 Born into a working-class family in Leningrad (present-day St Petersburg)
1975 Joins the KGB intelligence service
1985 Posted to Dresden in the former socialist country of East Germany
1991 Resigns from KGB during the Soviet coup d'état attempt
1994 Serves as first deputy chairman of the St Petersburg city government under mentor Anatoly Sobchak
1996 Transferred to Moscow to work under President Boris Yeltsin
1998 Named director of the Federal Security Service (FSB), the successor agency to the KGB
1999 Yeltsin (right), who is battling alcoholism, names Putin his prime minister. Putin oversees the launch of the second Chechen war
2000 After Yeltsin sensationally resigns on New Year's Eve of 1999, Putin takes over as president. In March 2000, he wins just over 50% votes in the presidential elections
2004 Putin re-elected with over 70% of the vote
2007 Names first deputy prime minister Dmitry Medvedev as his favoured candidate to succeed him
2008 Barred from a third consecutive term by the Constitution, Putin steps down and Medvedev wins presidency. Days after taking office, Medvedev names Putin as his prime minister
2011 Medvedev (right) proposes Putin stand for a third presidential term
2012 Putin elected with 63.6% of the vote, sparking massive protests and accusations of vote-rigging
2013 Divorces his wife Lyudmila after three decades of marriage
2014 Russia annexes the Ukrainian territory of Crimea, sparking massive protests in the West and a wave of nationalism in Russia
2015 Putin authorises Russian intervention in Syria after a formal request by President Bashar al-Assad
2017 Accused of masterminding poll meddling in the 2016 US presidential election as ties with Washington worsen
2018 Re-elected president with over 76% of the vote