Photo Gallery The 'Putvedev' Era Begins
Russian President Vladimir Putin (left), annointed his first deputy prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev (right), as his chosen successor last December. Medvedev will be sworn in as Russia's new president on Wednesday, but it remains to be seen just how much power he will wield.
Putin and Medvedev have sworn they will have a "harmonious" relationship, but many are predicting bitter power plays.
Medvedev tests a Kalashnikov gun during a visit to the Izhmash plant, the largest firearms producer in Russia. But how much fire power will he have as Russian president? During a recent speech before the Russian State Council, Putin laid out a set of goals that went as far into the future as 2020.
After a four year interregnum with Medvedev (seen here at an agricultural conference in the city of Barnaul) as president, the Russian constitution would permit Putin to return for an additional two terms in the Kremlin.
When Putin, also from St. Petersburg, became president, he pulled Medvedev into his government bureaucracy. Medvedev is also chairman of Russian gas giant Gazprom, the world's fourth largest company.
Putin-favored Medvedev uses what one might call the Teflon principle: No matter what he touches, nothing sticks to him. The Russian daily Kommersant writes: "Medvedev was intricately involved in most of the major power struggles from 1999 to 2007, without being directly associated with them."
Medvedev has been married to his wife Svetlana for 18 years. She appears to have been preparing for her role as first lady for some time now. Seen here with the patriarch of Moscow, she has lost weight, ordered more stylish outfits and begun showing up to church more often.
Last summer, Vladimir Putin famously took his shirt off in a macho show for photographers. Medvedev hasn't done that -- at least not yet -- but Russian children apparently see him as a strong role model. This child's drawing depicts him wearing the Olympic rings, lifting weights and a symbol of Russia's imperial czars.
