As Putin reaches 25 years in power, has he 'taken care of Russia'?

I volition ne'er hide New Year's Eve 1999.

I was moving arsenic a shaper successful the BBC's Moscow bureau. Suddenly determination was breaking news: Russia's President Boris Yeltsin had stepped down.

His determination to resign took everyone by surprise, including the British property corps successful Moscow. When the quality broke determination was nary analogous successful the office. That meant I had to measurement successful to constitute and broadcast my archetypal BBC dispatch.

"Boris Yeltsin ever said helium would spot retired his afloat word successful office," I wrote. "Today helium told Russians he'd changed his mind."

It was the commencement of my vocation arsenic a reporter.

And the commencement of Vladimir Putin's arsenic Russia's leader.

Following Yeltsin's resignation, successful accordance with the Russian constitution, Prime Minister Putin became acting president. Three months aboriginal helium won the election.

On leaving the Kremlin, Yeltsin's parting acquisition to Putin was: "Take attraction of Russia!"

I've recovered myself recalling these words of Yeltsin much and more, the person Russia's warfare connected Ukraine gets to the three-year mark.

That's due to the fact that President Putin's full-scale penetration of Ukraine has had devastating consequences.

Primarily for Ukraine, which has seen monolithic demolition and casualties successful its cities. Almost 20% of its territory has been occupied and 10 cardinal of its citizens person been displaced.

But for Russia, too:

• Since Vladimir Putin's determination to motorboat his alleged "special subject operation" Russia has sustained dense losses connected the battlefield
• Russian towns and cities travel nether regular drone attack
• Ukrainian soldiers person occupied a portion of Russia's Kursk region
• International sanctions are heaping unit connected Russia's economy
• What's more, the country's demographic concern is dire
• Domestic repression has picked up apace

I've been reporting connected Putin since helium came to powerfulness a 4th of a period ago.

On 31 December 1999, who would person thought that Russia's caller person would inactive beryllium successful powerfulness 2 and a fractional decades later? Or that Russia contiguous would beryllium waging warfare connected Ukraine and facing disconnected with the West?

I often wonderment whether the people of past would person been drastically antithetic if Yeltsin had picked idiosyncratic other to win him. The question, of course, is academic. History is afloat of ifs and buts and maybes.

One happening I tin accidental with certainty: implicit twenty-five years I've seen antithetic Putins.

And I'm not the lone one.

"The Putin I met with, did bully concern with, established a Nato-Russia Council with, is very, precise antithetic from this astir megalomaniac astatine the contiguous moment," erstwhile Nato main Lord Robertson told maine successful 2023.

"The antheral who stood beside maine successful May 2002, close beside me, and said Ukraine is simply a sovereign and autarkic federation authorities which volition marque its ain decisions astir security, is present the antheral who says that [Ukraine] is not a federation state.

"I deliberation that Vladimir Putin has a precise bladed tegument and a immense ambition for his country. The Soviet Union was recognised arsenic the 2nd superpower successful the world. Russia can't marque immoderate claims successful that direction. And I deliberation that ate distant astatine his ego."

That is 1 imaginable mentation for the alteration we've seen successful Putin: his burning ambition to "Make Russia Great Again" (and to marque up for what galore comprehend arsenic Moscow's decision successful the Cold War) enactment Russia connected an inevitable collision people with its neighbours – and with the West.

The Kremlin has a antithetic explanation.

From the speeches helium gives, the comments helium makes, Putin appears driven by resentment, by an all-encompassing feeling that for years Russia has been lied to and disrespected, its information concerns dismissed by the West.

But does Putin himself judge that helium has fulfilled Yeltsin's petition to "take attraction of Russia?"

I precocious had a accidental to find out.

More than 4 hours into his lengthy end-of-year property conference, Putin invited maine to inquire a question.

"Boris Yeltsin told you to instrumentality attraction of Russia," I reminded the president. "But what of the important losses successful your alleged 'special subject operation', the Ukrainian troops successful Kursk region, the sanctions, the precocious inflation. Do you deliberation you've taken attraction of your country?"

"Yes," President Putin replied. "And I haven't conscionable taken attraction of it. We've pulled backmost from the borderline of the abyss."

He portrayed Yeltsin's Russia arsenic a state that had been losing its sovereignty. He accused the West of having "patronisingly patted" Yeltsin connected the enarthrosis portion "using Russia for its ain purposes". But he, Putin, was "doing everything", helium said, "to guarantee Russia was an autarkic sovereign state".

Presenting himself arsenic the defender of Russian sovereignty: is this a presumption he's travel up with retrospectively to effort to warrant the warfare successful Ukraine? Or does Putin truly judge this instrumentality connected modern Russian history?

I'm inactive not sure. Not yet. But I consciousness that it is simply a cardinal question.

The reply to it whitethorn good power however the warfare ends - and Russia's aboriginal direction.