Vladimir Putin: Turning Energy Into Power

There was never any doubt that Vladimir Putin, the Russian President, would raise his international profile in 2006. His schedule for the year included an official visit to China in March, chairing the G-8 summit in his hometown of St. Petersburg in July, and an invitation to be the guest of honor at a meeting of European Union leaders in Finland in October. Yet the way he dominated headlines around the world for much of the year — for better and for worse — may have come as a surprise even to the canny former kgb ...