Vladimir Putin is about to be inaugurated Tuesday for a fifth time period as president in a gilded corridor within the Kremlin Palace the place Russian czars have been as soon as topped. The standard pomp and ceremony is designed to convey his would possibly as Russia’s supreme, uncontested chief for the previous quarter-century.
As Putin met with members of the federal government Monday, making ready to start his new time period, Russia’s Protection Ministry introduced it will stage tactical nuclear missile drills within the close to future, accusing Western officers of escalatory rhetoric over the Ukraine struggle. Russia’s International Ministry additionally summoned the British and French ambassadors for a scolding, sending a tricky message about Russia’s hardening method to the West.