Planet Putin

President Vladimir Putin has been in power longer than any Russian ruler since Stalin. A modern day tsar and reportedly the richest man in the world, the Russian strongman has engineered a power grab to maintain his iron grip until 2036. Robert Service, a leading Kremlin expert, cautions not to overestimate the former KGB officer’s strategic abilities. He tells Die Weltwoche, “We too often accord to Putin far too much respect.”

Last week, former cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova of the United Russia Party took to the floor of the state Duma. The first woman to fly into space offered an amendment to allow Russian President Vladimir Putin to remain in power after his fourth term officially ends in 2024. Following her speech which garnered raucous parliamentary applause, Putin addressed the lawmakers: “The president is a guarantor of security of our state, its internal stability and evolutionary development. We have had enough revolutions.”

Planet Putin
...