Pictures of Russian President before he became a leader chronicles his journey from boy to man

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• Pictures tell the story of Russian leader Vladimir Putin from a young schoolboy to president
• The President is shown in class photos as well as in a military uniform - and posing in a leather jacket
• There are also snaps of the 64-year-old at his wedding and as a doting father to his two daughters

[FONT=graphik, Arial, sans-serif]Vladimir Putin[/FONT] is known as the leader of one of the world's most powerful countries, at loggerheads with several nations and international organisations after his invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea since 2014, as well as his support for Syrian president-cum-dictator Bashar Al-Assad throughout the ongoing brutal and devastating war in the Middle East.



He is most often pictured with other heads of state at official gatherings, during displays of military strength in his home nation or - rather famously - enjoying fishing and hunting in the Russian countryside.


However, that was not always the case, and there was a time when a younger Vladimir would pose for the camera dressed in a snazzy leather jacket and pout to match, or even before that, looking sullen and pouting in school photographs.


Putin was born in what was then the Soviet city of Leningrad - now Saint Petersburg - and these images show him during his formative pre-leader years: from a little boy to a teenager, serving in the military, getting married and having children.

 

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Starting off: Vladimir Putin was born in what was then the Soviet city of Leningrad - now Saint Petersburg - in 1952, and although now one of the richest men in the world, he grew up in poor conditions in a city still rebuilding after World War II. Here he is seen in two class photographs, in 1960 and circa 1965

 

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Beloved son: Young Vladimir, pictured with his mother Maria Putina in 1958, was his parents' third son, however his two older brothers both died before he was born

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Pout perfected: During his early teenage years, Vladimir was a member of a local street gang, and has himself admitted in interviews that he struggled with time management and was notoriously late for class in the morning

 

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From the street to the ring: Putin's teacher at the time has since branded him a troublemaker, but his life took a new direction when he began practicing boxing and martial arts

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Stylish student: Putin has said that he knew in high school that he eventually wanted to work in military intelligence, and was told the route was either through serving in the army or getting a degree. When this photo was taken in 1970 he had just begun his law studies at Saint Petersburg State University, and is striking a pose in a leather jacket and brogue-style shoes

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From student to the KGB: Putin is pictured left in 1972, three years before finishing his law degree, and right in 1980, five years into his career as an intelligence officer with the Russian secret service, the KGB

 

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This again: It is unlikely that Putin, pictured last week, is proud of every one of the photos from his youth and young adulthood

 

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Family gathering: Putin is pictured with his father - also named Vladimir Putin - and his mother in the summer of 1985, shortly before he was sent on an undercover mission to East Germany, working as a Russian spy under the cover of a translator. He had started learning German in high school and had a knack for the language, becoming fluent by adulthood

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Fighter and a lover? From the age of 12, Putin - pictured here circa 1970 - began learning judo and sambo (a Russian form of martial arts) and at age 18, around the time when this photoghraph was taken, he was the Leningrad judo champion

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Enjoying his university years: This picture shows Putin as a universitystudent during a party in Saint Petersburg, having a dance with one of his female friends, a woman reportedly named Elena

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One goal, one pose: Some ten years separate these two photographs, left Putin has just left high school, and right he is a counter intelligence officer, reportedly monitoring government officials and foreign nationals in Saint Petersburg, yet the distinctive pouting face stays the same

 

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A man in love: Vladimir poses in the in the early 1980s, snaps taken at some point during his engagement to his future wife Lyudmila, a flight attendant four years his junior

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The happy couple: After a few years of engagement, Vladimir and Lyudmila married in St Petersburg - a marriage which lasted throughout his climb to the top and several years in power, before the couple divorced in 2014

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Proud father: The oldest of the couple's two daughters, Mariya Putina, was born in 1985. Putin has been notoriously private throughout his political career and has tried his best to keep his two daughters away from public life

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A doting dad: Putin is seen playing with Mariya after the family moved to Dresden, East Germany for his undercover KGB posting, where their second daughter was later born

 

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A different image: The image of a loving father playing with his two young daughters, a picture taken in the late 1980s, shows a different side to notorious hardman Vladimir Putin

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Loyal man: Putin, pictured with his wife in the mid 1980s was posted in Germany until 1990, and has himself told of how he began frantically burning all his files during the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. After the fall of East Germany, Putin returned to St Petersburg and worked at his old alma mater while also keeping a look out for potential new KGB recruits

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His most beloved: Putin's ex-wife has told the President's own official website that he would spoil his two girls and that she had to take responsibility for disciplining their daughters

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Sign of the times: The family poses for a photograph with the family dog, a snap believed to have been taken in the early 1990s at some point shortly before or after their return to St Petersburg

 

[BZ]

So here you are posting pics of one of our most despised enemies..until drumph was elected. If you lived in the US, you would be considered a traitor you piece of shit fucker.

 

[mplastered]

Wow, the anger. Is this barman?

 

[SheriffJoe]

So here you are posting pics of one of our most despised enemies..until drumph was elected. If you lived in the US, you would be considered a traitor you piece of shit fucker.

 

[HamGlaze]

Going to go out on a limb here and say he got picked on as a kid.

 

[carlspackler]

This guy is 5' 7".

If you ever see pictures of him at the economic summits he is always standing in the back ground. Probably standing on a milk crate.

 

[Dave007inVegas]

An anonymous source (BZ) reports that this picture proves Putin is a pedophile.