vladimir vladimirovich putin (, ) is the current president of russia. putin was born in leningrad, now saint petersburg, on 7 october 1952. he was the prime minister of russia from 1999 to 2000, then president of russia from march 2000 to may 2008, and prime minister again from 2008 to 2012. he became president again in 2012. he originally trained as a lawyer.