in may 2000, vladimir putin “sealed” his way to power – as the financial times/reuters put it. a legitimite democratic transfer from boris jelzin.

four years later, in september 2004, putin made a major move away from the russian federal to a centralized structure, plus: strengthening the power of the secret police. he could do this with ease because the superpower USA had used the september 2001 attack by al qaida to terrorize parts of the world. the article in the financial times puts putin’s drastic move into perspective:

he stayed in power for two terms, until may 2008. since the constitution barred him from a third term, he tricked the political system by a → a power-switching operation. he enthroned his friend and deputy prime minister dmitry medvedev as his intermediate successor. then a manipulation in the constitution skipped the two term limitation. medvedev handed power back to putin in 2012.