Most Talked-About Controversies Linked to Vladimir Putin
A closer look at the most debated and controversial moments involving Vladimir Putin.
Vladimir Putin is a prominent Russian politician who has significantly shaped Russia's trajectory in the 21st century. A former intelligence officer, he served as President of Russia from 2000-2008 and again from 2012 to the present. He also held the position of Prime Minister twice (1999-2000 and 2008-2012). Often regarded as the de facto leader of Russia since 2000, his leadership has been characterized by a strong emphasis on national sovereignty, centralized power, and assertive foreign policy.
1978: Publication of "Strategic Planning and Policy"
In 1978, the book "Strategic Planning and Policy" by King and Cleland was published, which Vladimir Putin later allegedly used in his thesis.
1987: Violation of Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty
Some analysts believe that Russia's nuclear strategy under Putin has brought Russia into violation of the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
1989: Freedom House Warns of Russia's Retreat from Freedom
In 2004, Freedom House warned that Russia's "retreat from freedom marks a low point not registered since 1989, when the country was part of the Soviet Union".
1999: Punishment of Journalists Challenging Official View
Scott Gehlbach has claimed that since 1999, Putin has systematically punished journalists who challenge his official point of view.
2002: Otto von Habsburg Warns of Putin as an International Threat
In a newspaper interview in 2002, Otto von Habsburg warned of Vladimir Putin as an "international threat".
March 2003: Alleged Birth of Elizaveta Rozova
In March 2003, Elizaveta, also known as Luiza Rozova, was allegedly born to Svetlana Krivonogikh and Vladimir Putin.
2003: Rose Revolution in Georgia
In 2003, the Rose Revolution in Georgia contributed to frictions in relations between Georgia and Russia.
2003: Otto von Habsburg Describes Putin as Cruel and Oppressive
In a speech in 2003, Otto von Habsburg described Vladimir Putin as "cruel and oppressive".
December 2004: Putin Criticizes Rose and Orange Revolutions
In December 2004, Putin criticized the Rose and Orange revolutions, warning of the risk of plunging the post-Soviet space into endless conflict.
2004: Freedom House Warns of Russia's Retreat from Freedom
In 2004, Freedom House warned that Russia's "retreat from freedom marks a low point not registered since 1989, when the country was part of the Soviet Union".
2005: Tulip Revolution in Kyrgyzstan
In 2005, the Tulip Revolution in Kyrgyzstan led to frictions in the relations of Kyrgyzstan with Russia.
2005: Otto von Habsburg Labels Putin a "Stone Cold Technocrat"
In a speech in 2005, Otto von Habsburg characterized Vladimir Putin as a "stone cold technocrat".
2005: Freedom House Lists Russia as "Not Free"
Since 2005, Freedom House has listed Russia as being "not free", citing democratic backsliding during Vladimir Putin's tenure.
2006: Putin Kisses Boy's Stomach, Generates Controversy
In 2006, Vladimir Putin lifted the shirt of a boy to kiss his stomach without permission, an incident that generated widespread reaction, although Tatiana Mikhailova opines it did not cause much reaction in Russia even though it was unprecedented and transgressive by Russian standards and would have caused outrage in any other country.
2007: CIA Estimate of Putin's Wealth
In 2007, the CIA estimated Putin's wealth at $40 billion.
April 2008: Moskovsky Korrespondent Reports Putin's Divorce and Engagement, Newspaper Shut Down
In April 2008, the Moskovsky Korrespondent reported that Vladimir Putin had divorced Lyudmila and was engaged to Alina Kabaeva. The story was denied, and the newspaper was subsequently shut down.
August 2008: South Ossetia War
In August 2008, Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili attempted to restore control over South Ossetia, leading to the 2008 South Ossetia War after Russian forces entered South Ossetia and other parts of Georgia, also opening a second front in Abkhazia.
2008: Putin's Statements on Ukraine and NATO
In 2008, at a NATO-Russia summit, Putin allegedly declared that if Ukraine joined NATO, Russia could move to annex the Ukrainian East and Crimea, and told U.S. President George W. Bush that "Ukraine is not even a state!".
2011: Putin Condemns Military Intervention in Libya and Gaddafi's Death
In 2011, Putin condemned the foreign military intervention in Libya, referring to the UN resolution as "defective and flawed". He also called Muammar Gaddafi's death a "planned murder" by the US.
2011: Photographs of Putin's Palace Leaked
In 2011, photographs from inside Putin's Palace were leaked onto the Internet.
2011: Economist Intelligence Unit Rates Russia as "Authoritarian"
Since 2011, The Economist Intelligence Unit has rated Russia as "authoritarian", changing from its previous classification as a "hybrid regime".
May 2012: Putin Reelected as President and Enactment of Restrictive Laws
Since May 2012, when Putin was reelected as president, Russia has enacted many restrictive laws, started inspections of non-governmental organizations, harassed, intimidated and imprisoned political activists, and started to restrict critics.
June 2012: Putin Rejects Hollande's Call for Assad to Step Down in Syria
In June 2012, during a meeting in Paris, Vladimir Putin rejected French President François Hollande's call for Bashar al-Assad to step down from power in Syria. Putin echoed Assad's argument that anti-regime militants were responsible for much of the bloodshed.
August 2012: Critics List Putin's Residences
In August 2012, critics of Vladimir Putin listed the ownership of 20 villas and palaces, nine of which were built during his 12 years in power.
2012: Allegations of "Putin's Palace" Construction
In 2012, Sergei Kolesnikov, a former business associate of Vladimir Putin's, told the BBC's Newsnight programme that he had been ordered by Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin to oversee the building of a massive Italianate-style mansion costing an alleged US$1 billion, dubbed "Putin's Palace" near Praskoveevka. He also said the mansion, built on government land with helipads and a private road paid for from state funds and guarded by officials in Kremlin guard uniforms, was built for Putin's private use.
2012: Crackdown on Liberal Media
Maria Lipman claims that "The crackdown that followed Putin's return to the Kremlin in 2012 extended to the liberal media, which had until then been allowed to operate fairly independently".
2012: Mass Protests Against Election Falsification and Censorship
The period after 2012 saw mass protests against the falsification of elections, censorship, and the toughening of free assembly laws.
September 2013: Putin Urges Caution Against US Intervention in Syria
In September 2013, Vladimir Putin published an op-ed in The New York Times urging caution against U.S. intervention in Syria and criticizing American exceptionalism. Following this, Putin helped arrange for the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons.
2013: Russia's Press Freedom Ranking
In 2013, Reporters Without Borders ranked Russia 148 out of 179 countries in press freedom, criticizing the crackdown on political opposition and failure to prosecute journalist murderers. Freedom House also rated Russian media as "not free" in 2013, noting absent safeguards for journalists and media enterprises.
2013: US Cancels Summit After Snowden Asylum
In late 2013, Russian-American relations deteriorated further when the United States canceled a summit for the first time since 1960 after Putin granted asylum to Edward Snowden, who had leaked classified information from the NSA.
March 2014: Russian Annexation of Crimea
Following the Revolution of Dignity in March 2014, the Russian Federation annexed Crimea, with Putin stating it was because "Crimea has always been and remains an inseparable part of Russia."
March 2014: Putin Cites Kosovo Precedent for Crimea Recognition
In March 2014, Putin used Kosovo's declaration of independence as a justification for recognizing the independence of Crimea, citing the so-called "Kosovo independence precedent".
August 2014: Putin's statement on Russian and Ukrainian Peoples
In late August 2014, Putin stated: "People who have their own views on history and the history of our country may argue with me, but it seems to me that the Russian and Ukrainian peoples are practically one people."
2014: Annexation of Crimea
In 2014, Putin's tenure included the controversial annexation of Crimea, marking a significant foreign policy action.
2014: Russia Suspended from G8
In 2014, Russia was suspended from the G8 group as a result of its annexation of Crimea. Putin criticized the United States, accusing them of destabilizing world order.
2014: Henry Kissinger Writes That the West Has Demonized Putin
In 2014, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger wrote that the West has demonized Vladimir Putin.
2014: Putin Named Person of the Year by OCCRP
In 2014, the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project named Putin their Person of the Year for furthering corruption and organized crime.
December 2015: Putin's Statement on Ukrainian Culture and Literature
In late December 2015, after making a similar statement, Putin stated: "the Ukrainian culture, as well as Ukrainian literature, surely has a source of its own".
2015: Putin Takes Stronger Pro-Assad Stance
In 2015, Vladimir Putin adopted a stronger pro-Assad stance and mobilized military support for the Syrian regime. This action increased Russia's influence in the Eastern Mediterranean, including strengthening control over the Tartus Naval Base and operating the Khmeimim Air Base.
2015: Reported Birth of Putin's Daughter with Kabaeva (Denied)
In 2015, it was reported that Alina Kabaeva gave birth to a daughter by Vladimir Putin; however, this report was denied.
2015: Larry Diamond States Russia Not Considered a Democracy
In 2015, political scientist Larry Diamond stated that "no serious scholar would consider Russia today a democracy" under Vladimir Putin.
January 2016: Owen report published
On January 21, 2016, the Owen report was published, stating that the FSB operation to kill Mr. Litvinenko was probably approved by Mr. Patrushev and also by President Putin.
April 2016: Panama Papers Leak
In April 2016, 11 million documents from the Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca were leaked. While Putin's name didn't appear, reports linked his associates to offshore companies worth US$2 billion. The Süddeutsche Zeitung suggested Putin's family could be profiting from this money.
December 2016: US Intelligence Accuses Putin of Election Interference
In December 2016, US intelligence officials stated that Putin approved email hacking and cyber attacks during the U.S. election against Hillary Clinton. Putin's spokesman denied the reports, and Clinton accused Putin of having a personal grudge against her.
2016: Legislation Prohibiting Missionary Activity Passed
In 2016, Putin oversaw the passage of legislation that prohibited missionary activity in Russia.
2016: Alexei Navalny Calls Putin the "Tsar of Corruption"
In 2016, opposition activist and blogger Alexei Navalny described Vladimir Putin as the "Tsar of corruption".
2017: Publication of Red Hangover: Legacies of Twentieth-Century Communism
In 2017, Kristen Ghodsee's book 'Red Hangover: Legacies of Twentieth-Century Communism' argued that Western powers' triumphalism after the Cold War and focus on linking leftist ideals to Stalinism allowed neoliberalism to rise. According to the book, this undermined democratic institutions and reforms, leading to economic misery, unemployment, hopelessness, and inequality in the former Eastern Bloc, including Russia, which fueled Putin's right-wing nationalism.
2017: Newsweek reports 67% held Putin personally responsible for high-level corruption
In 2017, Newsweek reported that a poll indicated that 67% held Vladimir Putin personally responsible for high-level corruption.
2017: Putin Criticizes Violence in Myanmar
In 2017, Putin criticized violence in Myanmar against the Rohingya minorities.
March 2018: Skripal Poisoning and Accusations
In March 2018, former double agent Sergei Skripal was poisoned with a Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury. The British government accused the Russian state of attempted murder, a charge denied by Russia. Boris Johnson stated it was "overwhelmingly likely" Putin had ordered the poisoning, which was called "shocking" by Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
October 2018: Majority of Russians Agree Putin Bears Responsibility for Country's Problems
In October 2018, a survey revealed that two-thirds of Russians agreed that Vladimir Putin bears full responsibility for the problems of the country, attributed to declining belief in "good tsar and bad boyars".
2018: Forbes Describes Putin's Actions as Those of a Dictator
Following the jailing of Alexei Navalny in 2018, Forbes wrote that Vladimir Putin's actions are those of a dictator who can only remain in power through force and repression.
2018: Allegation of Sensory Room Installation
In 2018, the Russian political magazine Sobesednik alleged that Vladimir Putin had a sensory room installed in his private residence in the Novgorod Oblast.
January 2019: Russians Trust in Putin Hits Historic Low
In January 2019, the percentage of Russians trusting Vladimir Putin hit a then-historic low of 33%.
2019: Reported Birth of Twin Sons by Putin and Kabaeva
In 2019, Kabaeva reportedly gave birth to twin sons by Putin.
May 2020: Putin's Approval Rating Amid COVID Crisis
In May 2020, amid the COVID-19 crisis, Vladimir Putin's approval rating was 68% when respondents were presented with a list of names and 27% when respondents were expected to name politicians they trust.
June 2020: Number of Political Prisoners in Russia
As of June 2020, per the Memorial Human Rights Center, there were 380 political prisoners in Russia.
November 2020: Proekt Alleges Putin has Another Daughter
In November 2020, an investigation by Proekt alleged that Vladimir Putin has another daughter, Elizaveta, also known as Luiza Rozova, who was born in March 2003, with Svetlana Krivonogikh.
2020: Law on Labelling Individuals and Organizations as "Foreign Agents"
In 2020, Putin signed a law on labelling individuals and organizations receiving funding from abroad as "foreign agents".
2020: Belton's Allegations of KGB Support for RAF
In 2020, journalist Catherine Belton wrote that the downplaying of Putin's work in Dresden was actually a cover for Putin's involvement in KGB coordination and support for the terrorist Red Army Faction (RAF).
January 2021: Navalny Accuses Putin of Building Estate with Fraudulent Funds
On January 19, 2021, two days after Alexei Navalny was detained by Russian authorities upon his return to Russia, a video investigation by him and the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) was published. The report accused Vladimir Putin of using fraudulently obtained funds to build an estate for himself, calling it "the world's biggest bribe." Navalny stated the estate is 39 times the size of Monaco and cost over 100 billion rubles ($1.35 billion) to construct.
July 2021: Publication of "On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians"
In July 2021, Putin published a lengthy article "On the Historical Unity of Russians and Ukrainians," and stated the formation of a Ukrainian state hostile to Moscow was comparable to weapons of mass destruction. It was made mandatory reading for military-political training in the Russian Armed Forces.
November 2021: The Economist Notes Putin Has Shifted from Autocracy to Dictatorship
In November 2021, The Economist noted that Vladimir Putin had "shifted from autocracy to dictatorship".
February 2022: Launched full-scale invasion of Ukraine
In February 2022, during his fourth presidential term, Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, leading to international condemnation and sanctions.
February 2022: Survey Shows Support for "Special Military Operation" in Ukraine
In late February 2022, a survey by Russian Field found that 59% of respondents supported the "special military operation" in Ukraine. Later polls obtained by Radio Liberty indicated 71% support among Russians.
March 2022: Putin's Approval Rating Jumps in Russia Amid War Censorship Laws
In March 2022, Vladimir Putin's approval rating in Russia jumped from 71% in February to 83%. Experts cautioned that the figures may not accurately reflect public mood due to war censorship laws and fear of negative consequences.
April 2022: The Sun Asserts Putin May Have Parkinson's Disease
In April 2022, London tabloid newspaper The Sun asserted that based on video footage Vladimir Putin may have Parkinson's disease, although the Kremlin and outside medical professionals rejected this possibility.
July 2022: CIA Director States No Evidence Suggests Putin is Unstable
In July 2022, the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, William Burns, stated they had no evidence to suggest Vladimir Putin was unstable or in bad health. The statement was made because of increasing unconfirmed media speculation about Putin's health.
September 2022: Announced partial mobilization and annexed Ukrainian oblasts
In September 2022, Vladimir Putin announced a partial mobilization and forcibly annexed four Ukrainian oblasts into Russia.
2022: Swiss Media Report Kabaeva Gave Birth to Boys
In 2022, Swiss media, citing the couple's Swiss gynecologist, wrote that Kabaeva gave birth to a boy on both occasions she had children.
2022: Condemnation of Putin Following Civilian Casualties in Ukraine
In 2022, following civilian casualties during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, U.S. President Joe Biden called Putin a war criminal and a "murderous dictator." During the State of the Union Address that same year, Biden stated that Putin had "badly miscalculated." Sergiy Kyslytsya, the Ukrainian envoy to the United Nations, compared Putin to Adolf Hitler, as did Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins.
2022: Putin's View of Himself Following Ukraine Invasion
Since the 2022 Ukraine invasion, Putin and his circle began promoting the idea in Russian media that they are the modern-day version of the 17th-century Romanov tsars who ended Russia's "Time of Troubles", meaning they claim to be the peacemakers and stabilizers after the fall of the Soviet Union.
March 2023: International Criminal Court issued arrest warrant
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin for war crimes related to illegal child abductions during the war.
September 2023: VTsIOM Pollster Reports Low Active Support for War in Russia
In September 2023, VTsIOM state pollster Valery Fyodorov stated that only 10–15% of Russians actively supported the war in Ukraine, and most did not demand the conquest of Kyiv or Odesa.
2023: Der Spiegel Investigation
In 2023, an investigation by Der Spiegel reported that the anonymous source claiming Putin's involvement with the RAF had never been an RAF member and is "considered a notorious fabulist".
2024: Putin Achieves 88% of Popular Vote in Russian Presidential Election
In 2024, Vladimir Putin achieved 88% of the popular vote in the Russian presidential election, running under an independent banner. Reports of irregularities, including ballot stuffing and coercion, surfaced during the election. Russian authorities claimed Putin won 88.12% and 92.83% of votes in occupied areas of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, respectively, and 98.99% of the vote in Chechnya.
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