Vladimir Putin To Become Longest-Serving Russian Leader Since Empress Catherine 'The Great'

A landslide victory in the Russian presidential elections has ensured another six-year term for Vladimir Putin. The 71-year-old secured a massive 87.8 per cent votes in an election, which, according to the US, wasn't free and fair.

The voting percentage in favour of Mr Putin is the highest-ever result in Russia's post-Soviet history, according to the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM).

Mr Putin will become the longest-serving Russian leader since the reign of Catherine 'the Great', should he complete his next six-year tenure. The former empress ruled over Russia for 34 years and four months between 1762 and 1796.

Joseph Stalin, the former general secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, led the country for 29 years from 1923 to 1954. If Mr Putin sees through his tenure, he will surpass Stalin's reign and become the longest-serving Russian leader in 200 years.

The 71-year-old, who first rose to power in 1999, has already led the country for 25 years and his re-election on Sunday showed that he is still widely popular among the Russian public.

The former KGB foreign intelligence officer has been in power since 1999, first as a prime minister, then president, followed by another four-year term as the prime minister of the country. In 2012, he became the president again and has remained in power ever since.  

In 2020, Vladimir Putin signed an order allowing him to stay in power until 2036, taking his tenure to an astonishing 37 years.

Mr Putin's era has already coincided with five US presidents and seven prime ministers of the UK.

Meanwhile, in his first comment after his landslide win, Vladimir Putin warned the West on Monday.

Referring to French President Emmanuel Macron's remark and the possibility of a conflict between Russia and NATO, Mr Putin told Reuters that everything was possible in the modern world. "It is clear to everyone that this will be one step away from a full-scale World War Three. I think hardly anyone is interested in this," he said.

Mr Putin said that he wished President Macron would stop trying to aggravate the war in Ukraine and play a role in finding peace. He added, “It seems that France could play a role. All is not lost yet."

"I've been saying it over and over again and I'll say it again. We are for peace talks, but not just because the enemy is running out of bullets," he said, adding, "if they really, seriously, want to build peaceful, good-neighbourly relations between the two states in the long term, and not simply take a break for rearmament for 1.5-2 years."