A Russian politician who served as President of Russia from 2000 to 2008, then was re-elected in 2012. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin was born in Leningrad, which is now known as Saint Petersburg in Russia. After graduating from Leningrad State University with a degree in law in 1975, he began his career as a KGB foreign intelligence officer for 16 years, rising to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was appointed as Director of the Federal Security Service, a former arm of Soviet intelligence. Putin has appeared in a number of documentaries, such as Putin's Witnesses (2018).