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83-474: Aviation Week was a favorite conduit for defense-related companies and labs to leak information to the public as part of their policy by press release efforts. This led to it being informally referred to "Aviation Leak and Space Mythology". The magazine was first published in August 1916. Early editors Ladislas d'Orsy and Donald W. McIlhiney (1921 to 25) were Quiet Birdmen . Publisher (1927 to 29) Earl D. Osborn

166-743: A KGB foreign intelligence officer for 16 years, rising to the rank of lieutenant colonel . He resigned in 1991 to begin a political career in Saint Petersburg. In 1996, he moved to Moscow to join the administration of President Boris Yeltsin . He briefly served as the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) and then as secretary of the Security Council of Russia before being appointed prime minister in August 1999. Following Yeltsin's resignation, Putin became acting president and, in less than four months,

249-427: A compact fusion reactor that is small enough to power interplanetary spacecraft, ships and ultimately large aircraft that would virtually never require refueling. If successful, the groundbreaking project could shake up the global energy industry. On its January 16, 2015 cover, Aviation Week & Space Technology named Russian President Vladimir Putin "The Notorious Mr. Putin - Person Of The Year." On its website,

332-499: A full-scale invasion of Ukraine , which prompted international condemnation and led to expanded sanctions . In September 2022, he announced a partial mobilization and forcibly annexed four Ukrainian oblasts into Russia . In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Putin for war crimes related to his alleged criminal responsibility for illegal child abductions during

415-658: A plagiarist according to Western standards. One book from which he copied entire paragraphs is the Russian-language edition of King and Cleland 's Strategic Planning and Policy (1978). Balzer wrote on the Putin thesis and Russian energy policy and concludes along with Olcott that "The primacy of the Russian state in the country’s energy sector is non-negotiable", and cites the insistence on majority Russian ownership of any joint-venture, particularly since BASF signed

498-636: A war in eastern Ukraine through several military incursions, resulting in international sanctions and a financial crisis in Russia . He also ordered a military intervention in Syria to support his ally Bashar al-Assad during the Syrian civil war , ultimately securing permanent naval bases in the Eastern Mediterranean . In February 2022, during his fourth presidential term, Putin launched

581-529: A 'grand bargain' with them. This bargain allowed the oligarchs to maintain most of their powers, in exchange for their explicit support for—and alignment with—Putin's government. The Moscow theater hostage crisis occurred in October 2002. Many in the Russian press and in the international media warned that the deaths of 130 hostages in the special forces' rescue operation during the crisis would severely damage President Putin's popularity. However, shortly after

664-659: A development was confirmed on 1 November 2013, when the Skunk Works revelations were published about the development work on the SR-72 exclusively in Aviation Week & Space Technology . The magazine dubbed it 'The Son of Blackbird'. Public attention to the news was large enough to overwhelm the Aviation Week servers. In a December 9, 2013 cover story, Aviation Week & Space Technology revealed details about

747-580: A few in his class of about 45 pupils who were not yet members of the Young Pioneer ( Komsomol ) organization. At the age of 12, he began to practice sambo and judo. In his free time, he enjoyed reading the works of Karl Marx , Friedrich Engels , and Lenin. Putin attended Saint Petersburg High School 281 with a German language immersion program. He is fluent in German and often gives speeches and interviews in that language. Putin studied law at

830-465: A furor among the German press corps. When asked about the incident in a January 2016 interview with Bild , Putin claimed he was not aware of her phobia, adding, "I wanted to make her happy. When I found out that she did not like dogs, I of course apologized." Merkel later told a group of reporters, "I understand why he has to do this – to prove he's a man. He's afraid of his own weakness. Russia has nothing, no successful politics or economy. All they have

913-519: A global-range nuclear aircraft . An article, complete with images claimed to be leaked by a spy agency, appeared in the December 1958 issue of Aviation Week . The article described a system that was suspiciously similar to some of the designs that were currently under consideration by large US aviation companies. Concerns were soon expressed that "the Russians were from three to five years ahead of

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996-525: A highly classified intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance stealth unmanned aircraft – the RQ-180 – that has been developed in secret by Northrop Grumman. The aircraft is currently flying at Area 51 in the Nevada desert and will become operational by 2015. In October 2014, Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works research lab gave Aviation Week editor Guy Norris access to a previously secret initiative to develop

1079-504: A member of the Saint Petersburg city government, was one of the suspects, was dropped. On 30 December 2000, yet another case against the prosecutor general was dropped "for lack of evidence", despite thousands of documents having been forwarded by Swiss prosecutors. On 12 February 2001, Putin signed a similar federal law which replaced the decree of 1999. A case regarding Putin's alleged corruption in metal exports from 1992

1162-637: A potential successor. Following the September 1999 Russian apartment bombings and the invasion of Dagestan by mujahideen , including the former KGB agents, based in the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria , Putin's law-and-order image and unrelenting approach to the Second Chechen War soon combined to raise his popularity and allowed him to overtake his rivals. While not formally associated with any party, Putin pledged his support to

1245-555: A private taxi driver to earn extra money, or considered such a job. On 28 June 1991, Putin became head of the Committee for External Relations of the Mayor's Office , with responsibility for promoting international relations and foreign investments and registering business ventures. Within a year, Putin was investigated by the city legislative council led by Marina Salye . It was concluded that he had understated prices and permitted

1328-637: A time, continued funding of US efforts, which culminated in the NB-36 testbed aircraft. The Soviets did have a nuclear aircraft design of their own, the Tupolev Tu-95LAL , but it did not fly until years later. Another apparent case of policy by press release was the famous Look article on flying saucers . At the time, the US Air Force and then the US Army were funding the development of

1411-414: Is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Russia from 1999 to 2000 and again from 2008 to 2012. At 24 years, 10 months and 28 days, he is the longest-serving Russian or Soviet leader since the 30-year tenure of Joseph Stalin . Putin worked as

1494-505: Is in Washington, D.C. Its longest run of ownership came when it was owned by McGraw-Hill. It was sold by McGraw Hill to Penton in 2013. It became part of Informa when Informa purchased Penton in 2016. Aviation Week Network also publishes Business & Commercial Aviation and Air Transport World magazines. The 1 December 1958 issue of Aviation Week included an article, "Soviets Flight Testing Nuclear Bomber", that claimed that

1577-472: Is not based on promises." Putin was barred from a third consecutive term by the Constitution . First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev was elected his successor. In a power-switching operation on 8 May 2008 , only a day after handing the presidency to Medvedev, Putin was appointed Prime Minister of Russia , maintaining his political dominance. Putin has said that overcoming the consequences of

1660-541: Is still used in discussions of defense policy . Myriad claims asserting global warming or ozone depletion have been described by editorialists, such as Mark Martin, the Chronicle Sacramento Bureau, and Hugh Ellsaesser, as "policy by press release." Likewise, the implication that Iraq was involved in the September 11 attacks or possessed weapons of mass destruction , based on evidence that

1743-846: Is this." In a speech in February 2007 at the Munich Security Conference , Putin complained about the feeling of insecurity engendered by the dominant position in geopolitics of the United States and observed that a former NATO official had made rhetorical promises not to expand into new countries in Eastern Europe. On 14 July 2007, Putin announced that Russia would suspend implementation of its Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces in Europe obligations, effective after 150 days, and suspend its ratification of

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1826-622: The Adapted Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty , which treaty was shunned by NATO members abeyant Russian withdrawal from Transnistria and the Republic of Georgia . Moscow continued to participate in the joint consultative group, because it hoped that dialogue could lead to the creation of an effective, new conventional arms control regime in Europe. Russia did specify steps that NATO could take to end

1909-521: The Avrocar at Avro Canada in Toronto . The article, in the 14 June 1955 edition, suggested that the recent wave of saucer reports were possibly caused by Soviet flying saucers, and the article went on to describe them and their capabilities. It included several images that appeared to be provided to them by Avro Canada, or someone in contact with them, including a description of the control system, which

1992-702: The Buran programme which were published on March 20, 1978. It revealed progressively the KeyHole Story after William Kampiles sold the KH-11 manual to a Soviet spy. The SR-72 is the proposed successor to the SR-71 Blackbird . There were unconfirmed rumors about the SR-72 dating back to 2007, when various sources disclosed that Lockheed Martin was developing a Mach 6 plane for the US Air Force. Such

2075-610: The Eisenhower administration when "leaked" documents were a common way for the various branches of the US military to attempt to garner funding for their pet projects when traditional chains of command failed, or they actively ended them. Practically any idea, no matter how outlandish, could gain some traction by simply claiming that the Soviet Union was working on a similar device. The first and most costly example of this behavior

2158-589: The Federal Security Service (FSB), the primary intelligence and security organization of the Russian Federation and the successor to the KGB. In 1999, Putin described communism as "a blind alley, far away from the mainstream of civilization". On 9 August 1999, Putin was appointed one of three first deputy prime ministers, and later on that day, was appointed acting prime minister of the Government of

2241-433: The Mayor of Leningrad . Putin claims that he resigned with the rank of lieutenant colonel on 20 August 1991, on the second day of the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt against Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev . Putin said: "As soon as the coup began, I immediately decided which side I was on", although he noted that the choice was hard because he had spent the best part of his life with "the organs". In May 1990, Putin

2324-689: The Permanent Arbitration Court in The Hague . On 7 October 2006, Anna Politkovskaya , a journalist who exposed corruption in the Russian army and its conduct in Chechnya , was shot in the lobby of her apartment building, on Putin's birthday. The death of Politkovskaya triggered international criticism, with accusations that Putin had failed to protect the country's new independent media. Putin himself said that her death caused

2407-658: The Presidential Staff , a post which he retained until May 1998, and chief of the Main Control Directorate of the Presidential Property Management Department (until June 1998). His predecessor in this position was Alexei Kudrin and his successor was Nikolai Patrushev , both future prominent politicians and Putin's associates. On 3 April 1997, Putin was promoted to 1st class Active State Councillor of

2490-488: The Russian economy grew on average by seven percent per year, driven by economic reforms and a fivefold increase in the price of oil and gas. Additionally, Putin led Russia in a conflict against Chechen separatists , reestablishing federal control over the region. While serving as prime minister under Medvedev, he oversaw a military conflict with Georgia and enacted military and police reforms . In his third presidential term, Russia annexed Crimea and supported

2573-511: The destruction battalion of the NKVD . Later, he was transferred to the regular army and was severely wounded in 1942. Putin's maternal grandmother was killed by the German occupiers of Tver region in 1941, and his maternal uncles disappeared on the Eastern Front during World War II. On 1 September 1960, Putin started at School No. 193 at Baskov Lane, near his home. He was one of

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2656-493: The 15th anniversary party of Gazprom , its employees threatened Ukraine with a stoppage of flow. On 4 April 2008 at the NATO Bucharest summit , invitee Putin told George W. Bush and other conference delegates: "We view the appearance of a powerful military bloc on our border as a direct threat to the security of our nation. The claim that this process is not directed against Russia will not suffice. National security

2739-695: The 1930s, died in infancy, and Viktor, born in 1940, died of diphtheria and starvation in 1942 during the Siege of Leningrad by Nazi Germany 's forces in World War II . Putin's mother was a factory worker, and his father was a conscript in the Soviet Navy , serving in the submarine fleet in the early 1930s. During the early stage of the Nazi invasion of the Soviet Union , his father served in

2822-668: The CIA's own reports had dismissed, was described as "policy by press release" by John Kerry and Lou Dobbs . A related term, public health by press release , is occasionally used ironically to imply official pronouncements or media campaigns belie inadequate effort or funding, but the term appeared in an article warning against a pitfall from the opposite direction (potential misassessment of limited clinical studies by press and policymakers). Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952)

2905-615: The East German communist regime commended Putin with a bronze medal for "faithful service to the National People's Army ". Putin has publicly conveyed delight over his activities in Dresden, once recounting his confrontations with anti-communist protestors of 1989 who attempted the occupation of Stasi buildings in the city. "Putin and his colleagues were reduced mainly to collecting press clippings , thus contributing to

2988-873: The Gazprom Nord Stream - Yuzhno-Russkoye deal in 2004 with a 49–51 structure, as opposed to the older 50–50 split of British Petroleum 's TNK-BP project. In 1975, Putin joined the KGB and trained at the 401st KGB School in Okhta, Leningrad . After training, he worked in the Second Chief Directorate ( counterintelligence ), before he was transferred to the First Chief Directorate , where he monitored foreigners and consular officials in Leningrad. In September 1984, Putin

3071-608: The German Democratic Republic or of the USSR. He explained that many documents were left to Germany only because the furnace burst but many documents of the KGB villa were sent to Moscow. After the collapse of the Communist East German government , Putin was to resign from active KGB service because of suspicions aroused regarding his loyalty during demonstrations in Dresden and earlier, although

3154-624: The KGB and the Soviet Army still operated in eastern Germany. He returned to Leningrad in early 1990 as a member of the "active reserves", where he worked for about three months with the International Affairs section of Leningrad State University , reporting to Vice-Rector Yuriy Molchanov , while working on his doctoral dissertation. There, he looked for new KGB recruits, watched the student body, and renewed his friendship with his former professor, Anatoly Sobchak , soon to be

3237-533: The KGB villa in Dresden for the official authorities of the would-be united Germany to prevent demonstrators, including KGB and Stasi agents, from obtaining and destroying them. He then supposedly burnt only the KGB files, in a few hours, but saved the archives of the Soviet Cultural Center for the German authorities. Nothing is told about the selection criteria during this burning; for example, concerning Stasi files or about files of other agencies of

3320-515: The Kremlin. Khodorkovsky was arrested, Yukos was bankrupted, and the company's assets were auctioned at below-market value, with the largest share acquired by the state company Rosneft . The fate of Yukos was seen as a sign of a broader shift of Russia towards a system of state capitalism . This was underscored in July 2014, when shareholders of Yukos were awarded $ 50 billion in compensation by

3403-676: The Leningrad State University named after Andrei Zhdanov (now Saint Petersburg State University ) in 1970 and graduated in 1975. His thesis was on "The Most Favored Nation Trading Principle in International Law". While there, he was required to join the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU); he remained a member until it ceased to exist in 1991. Putin met Anatoly Sobchak , an assistant professor who taught business law , and who later became

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3486-616: The RAF in West Germany. Klaus Zuchold, who claimed to be recruited by Putin, said that Putin handled a neo-Nazi , Rainer Sonntag, and attempted to recruit an author of a study on poisons. Putin reportedly met Germans to be recruited for wireless communications affairs together with an interpreter. He was involved in wireless communications technologies in South-East Asia due to trips of German engineers, recruited by him, there and to

3569-550: The Russian Federation by President Yeltsin . Yeltsin also announced that he wanted to see Putin as his successor. Later on that same day, Putin agreed to run for the presidency. On 16 August, the State Duma approved his appointment as prime minister with 233 votes in favor (vs. 84 against, 17 abstained), while a simple majority of 226 was required, making him Russia's fifth prime minister in fewer than eighteen months. On his appointment, few expected Putin, virtually unknown to

3652-688: The Russian Federation —the highest federal state civilian service rank . On 27 June 1997, at the Saint Petersburg Mining Institute , guided by rector Vladimir Litvinenko , Putin defended his Candidate of Science dissertation in economics, titled Strategic Planning of the Reproduction of the Mineral Resource Base of a Region under Conditions of the Formation of Market Relations . This exemplified

3735-472: The Saint Petersburg branch of the pro-government Our Home – Russia political party, the liberal party of power founded by Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin . In 1995, he managed the legislative election campaign for that party, and from 1995 through June 1997, he was the leader of its Saint Petersburg branch. In June 1996, Sobchak lost his bid for re-election in Saint Petersburg, and Putin, who had led his election campaign, resigned from his positions in

3818-443: The Soviets had made great progress in their own nuclear aircraft program. This was accompanied by an editorial on the topic as well. The magazine claimed that the aircraft was real beyond a doubt, stating that "A nuclear-powered bomber is being flight tested in the Soviet Union. ... It has been observed both in flight and on the ground by a wide variety of foreign observers from Communist and non-Communist countries." In reality, however,

3901-404: The US in the field of atomic aircraft engines and that they would move even further ahead unless the US pressed forward with its own program." In fact, the entire article was a hoax; third parties later revealed that the aircraft appearing in the pictures was the entirely-conventional Myasishchev M-50 Bounder , which never entered production. Nevertheless, the controversy managed to secure, for

3984-465: The US, for the first time since the downfall of the USSR. In December 2007, United Russia —the governing party that supports the policies of Putin—won 64.24% of the popular vote in their run for State Duma according to election preliminary results. United Russia's victory in the December 2007 elections was seen by many as an indication of strong popular support of the then Russian leadership and its policies. On 11 February 2008, while Putin addressed

4067-430: The West. However, a 2023 investigation by Der Spiegel reported that the anonymous source had never been an RAF member and is "considered a notorious fabulist" with "several previous convictions, including for making false statements". According to Putin's official biography, during the fall of the Berlin Wall that began on 9 November 1989, he saved the files of the Soviet Cultural Center (House of Friendship) and of

4150-400: The act of attempting to influence public policy by press releases intended to alarm the public into demanding action from their elected officials . In modern times, the term is used to dismiss an opponent's claims by suggesting the arguments to be lacking in substance and created solely to generate media attention. Perhaps the most common use of the term refers to an infamous period during

4233-413: The article was a hoax. The aircraft in the photographs was later revealed to be an M-50 bomber and not a nuclear-powered plane at all. After finding a December 1976 Titan IIID launch was for a secret KH-11 spy satellite, Aviation Week & Space Technology editor Craig Covault agreed with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. David C. Jones to hold on the story, but received details on

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4316-443: The city administration. He moved to Moscow and was appointed as deputy chief of the Presidential Property Management Department headed by Pavel Borodin . He occupied this position until March 1997. He was responsible for the foreign property of the state and organized the transfer of the former assets of the Soviet Union and the CPSU to the Russian Federation. On 26 March 1997, President Boris Yeltsin appointed Putin deputy chief of

4399-572: The co-author of the Russian constitution . Putin was influential in Sobchak's career in Saint Petersburg, and Sobchak was influential in Putin's career in Moscow. In 1997, Putin received a degree in economics ( kandidat ekonomicheskikh nauk ) at the Saint Petersburg Mining University for a thesis on energy dependencies and their instrumentalisation in foreign policy. His supervisor was Vladimir Litvinenko , who in 2000 and again in 2004 managed his presidential election campaigns in St Petersburg. Igor Danchenko and Clifford Gaddy consider Putin to be

4482-478: The commission for the preparation of agreements on the delimitation of the power of the regions and head of the federal center attached to the president, replacing Sergey Shakhray . After Putin's appointment, the commission completed no such agreements, although during Shakhray's term as the head of the Commission 46 such agreements had been signed. Later, after becoming president, Putin cancelled all 46 agreements. On 25 July 1998, Yeltsin appointed Putin director of

4565-408: The custom in Russia whereby a young rising official would write a scholarly work in mid-career. Putin's thesis was plagiarized . Fellows at the Brookings Institution found that 15 pages were copied from an American textbook. On 25 May 1998, Putin was appointed First Deputy Chief of the Presidential Staff for the regions, in succession to Viktoriya Mitina . On 15 July, he was appointed head of

4648-518: The establishment of the Parliamentary elections and a Regional Government. Throughout the Second Chechen War , Russia severely disabled the Chechen rebel movement; however, sporadic attacks by rebels continued to occur throughout the northern Caucasus. On 14 March 2004, Putin was elected to the presidency for a second term, receiving 71% of the vote. The Beslan school hostage crisis took place on 1–3 September 2004; more than 330 people died, including 186 children. The near 10-year period prior to

4731-462: The export of metals valued at $ 93 million in exchange for foreign food aid that never arrived. Despite the investigators' recommendation that Putin be fired, Putin remained head of the Committee for External Relations until 1996. From 1994 to 1996, he held several other political and governmental positions in Saint Petersburg. In March 1994, Putin was appointed as first deputy chairman of the Government of Saint Petersburg . In May 1995, he organized

4814-429: The four alliance members outside the original treaty, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Slovenia, join it." In early 2007, " Dissenters' Marches " were organized by the opposition group The Other Russia , led by former chess champion Garry Kasparov and national-Bolshevist leader Eduard Limonov . Following prior warnings, demonstrations in several Russian cities were met by police action, which included interfering with

4897-423: The general public, to last any longer than his predecessors. He was initially regarded as a Yeltsin loyalist; like other prime ministers of Boris Yeltsin , Putin did not choose ministers himself, his cabinet was determined by the presidential administration. Yeltsin's main opponents and would-be successors were already campaigning to replace the ailing president, and they fought hard to prevent Putin's emergence as

4980-416: The government more problems than her writings. In January 2007, Putin met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at his Black Sea residence in Sochi , two weeks after Russia switched off oil supplies to Germany. Putin brought his black Labrador Konni in front of Merkel, who has a noted phobia of dogs and looked visibly uncomfortable in its presence, adding, "I'm sure it will behave itself", causing

5063-435: The imprisonment and suppression of political opponents , intimidation and censorship of independent media in Russia , and a lack of free and fair elections . Russia has consistently received very low scores on Transparency International 's Corruption Perceptions Index , The Economist Democracy Index , Freedom House 's Freedom in the World index, and the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index . Putin

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5146-602: The magazine said that "no other person has had a more sweeping impact on aerospace and aviation—for better or worse—than Russian President Vladimir Putin. And for all but the most cynical of observers, Putin's far-reaching impact has definitely been for the worse. Because of this, he is Aviation Week's 2014 Person of the Year." The controversial issue caused a backlash among readers on its comments section and on social media. The editors-in-chief of Aviation Week & Space Technology (and its past titles) have been: Policy by press release Policy by press release refers to

5229-399: The mountains of useless information produced by the KGB", Russian-American Masha Gessen wrote in their 2012 biography of Putin. His work was also downplayed by former Stasi spy chief Markus Wolf and Putin's former KGB colleague Vladimir Usoltsev. Journalist Catherine Belton wrote in 2020 that this downplaying was actually cover for Putin's involvement in KGB coordination and support for

5312-498: The newly formed Unity Party , which won the second largest percentage of the popular vote (23.3%) in the December 1999 Duma elections , and in turn supported Putin. On 31 December 1999, Yeltsin unexpectedly resigned and, according to the Constitution of Russia , Putin became Acting President of the Russian Federation . On assuming this role, Putin went on a previously scheduled visit to Russian troops in Chechnya. The first presidential decree that Putin signed on 31 December 1999

5395-471: The period preceding Putin's rule. In 2005, the National Priority Projects were launched to improve Russia's health care , education , housing , and agriculture . The continued criminal prosecution of the wealthiest man in Russia at the time, president of Yukos oil and gas company Mikhail Khodorkovsky , for fraud and tax evasion was seen by the international press as a retaliation for Khodorkovsky's donations to both liberal and communist opponents of

5478-419: The rise of Putin after the dissolution of Soviet rule was a time of upheaval in Russia. In a 2005 Kremlin speech, Putin characterized the collapse of the Soviet Union as the "greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the twentieth century". Putin elaborated, "Moreover, the epidemic of disintegration infected Russia itself." The country's cradle-to-grave social safety net was gone and life expectancy declined in

5561-409: The siege had ended, the Russian president enjoyed record public approval ratings—83% of Russians declared themselves satisfied with Putin and his handling of the siege. In 2003, a referendum was held in Chechnya , adopting a new constitution which declares that the Republic of Chechnya is a part of Russia; on the other hand, the region did acquire autonomy. Chechnya has been gradually stabilized with

5644-401: The standard monthly issue. In 1947, its staff was reincorporated into the then-renamed Aviation Week . Once a month the magazine publishes an edition targeted at the maintenance, repair and overhaul business. Aviation Week & Space Technology is published by Aviation Week Network , a division of Informa . The magazine is headquartered in New York City , and its main editorial office

5727-416: The suspension. "These include [NATO] members cutting their arms allotments and further restricting temporary weapons deployments on each NATO member's territory. Russia also want[ed] constraints eliminated on how many forces it can deploy in its southern and northern flanks. Moreover, it is pressing NATO members to ratify a 1999 updated version of the accord, known as the Adapted CFE Treaty , and demanding that

5810-404: The terrorist Red Army Faction , whose members frequently hid in East Germany with the support of the Stasi. Dresden was preferred as a "marginal" town with only a small presence of Western intelligence services. According to an anonymous source who claimed to be a former RAF member, at one of these meetings in Dresden the militants presented Putin with a list of weapons that were later delivered to

5893-469: The travel of the protesters and the arrests of as many as 150 people who attempted to break through police lines. On 12 September 2007, Putin dissolved the government upon the request of Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov . Fradkov commented that it was to give the President a "free hand" in the run-up to the parliamentary election. Viktor Zubkov was appointed the new prime minister. On 19 September 2007, Putin's nuclear-capable bombers commenced exercises near

5976-502: The war . In April 2021, after a referendum , he signed into law constitutional amendments that included one allowing him to run for reelection twice more, potentially extending his presidency to 2036. In March 2024, he was reelected to another term. Under Putin's rule , the Russian political system has been transformed into an authoritarian dictatorship with a personality cult . His rule has been marked by endemic corruption and widespread human rights violations , including

6059-506: Was also a Quiet Birdman. With the coming of the Space Age , the current title was adopted in 1960. Other titles the magazine has held include Aviation & Aircraft Journal (1920–1921), Aviation (1922–1947), Aviation Week (1947–1958), Aviation Week Including Space Technology (1958–1959), before settling on its current title. Starting in August 1943, McGraw-Hill published a weekly magazine called Aviation News to accompany

6142-427: Was appointed as an advisor on international affairs to the mayor of Leningrad Anatoly Sobchak . In a 2017 interview with Oliver Stone , Putin said that he resigned from the KGB in 1991, following the coup against Mikhail Gorbachev, as he did not agree with what had happened and did not want to be part of the intelligence in the new administration. According to Putin's statements in 2018 and 2021, he may have worked as

6225-410: Was born on 7 October 1952 in Leningrad, Soviet Union (now Saint Petersburg, Russia), the youngest of three children of Vladimir Spiridonovich Putin (1911–1999) and Maria Ivanovna Putina ( née  Shelomova ; 1911–1998). His grandfather, Spiridon Putin (1879–1965), was a personal cook to Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin . Putin's birth was preceded by the deaths of two brothers: Albert, born in

6308-581: Was brought back by Marina Salye , but she was silenced and forced to leave Saint Petersburg. While his opponents had been preparing for an election in June 2000, Yeltsin's resignation resulted in the presidential elections being held on 26 March 2000; Putin won in the first round with 53% of the vote. The inauguration of President Putin occurred on 7 May 2000. He appointed the minister of finance , Mikhail Kasyanov , as prime minister. The first major challenge to Putin's popularity came in August 2000, when he

6391-449: Was criticized for the alleged mishandling of the Kursk submarine disaster . That criticism was largely because it took several days for Putin to return from vacation, and several more before he visited the scene. Between 2000 and 2004, Putin set about the reconstruction of the impoverished condition of the country, apparently winning a power-struggle with the Russian oligarchs , reaching

6474-410: Was elected to his first term as president. He was reelected in 2004 . Due to constitutional limitations of two consecutive presidential terms, Putin served as prime minister again from 2008 to 2012 under Dmitry Medvedev . He returned to the presidency in 2012, following an election marked by allegations of fraud and protests , and was reelected in 2018 . During Putin's initial presidential tenure,

6557-546: Was identical to the one used on the Avrocar. In the end, the concept proved unfeasible, and the Avrocar project was eventually canceled in 1961. The article nevertheless remains famous, as it is often presented as a US government misinformation campaign to deflect attention away from "real" UFOs: to exactly what end varies by the source. The term is now more commonly used, especially in the US, to refer to environmental policy , but it

6640-532: Was not revealed at the time, US intelligence services had actually made real estimates of the size of the Soviet fleet as early as 1956, placing it at around 20 aircraft. Nevertheless, the tactic of claiming the gap existed and then brushing aside any criticism as being "weak on defense," was so successful it led to a wave of similar claims. Another famous case was a claim that suggested the Soviets were working on

6723-597: Was sent to Moscow for further training at the Yuri Andropov Red Banner Institute . From 1985 to 1990, he served in Dresden , East Germany , using a cover identity as a translator. While posted in Dresden, Putin worked as one of the KGB's liaison officers to the Stasi secret police and was reportedly promoted to lieutenant colonel . According to the official Kremlin presidential site,

6806-460: Was the mythical " bomber gap ." After seeing the latest Soviet jet-powered bomber designs in 1955, a clamor broke out in Washington about the Soviets developing a lead in deploying strategic bombers , with estimates that hundreds would be available shortly. The result was a massive expansion of the US building program, which led to the eventual introduction of about 2,500 jet bombers. Although it

6889-480: Was titled "On guarantees for the former president of the Russian Federation and the members of his family". This ensured that "corruption charges against the outgoing President and his relatives" would not be pursued. This was most notably targeted at the Mabetex bribery case in which Yeltsin's family members were involved. On 30 August 2000, a criminal investigation (number 18/238278-95) in which Putin himself, as

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