Is Putin really behind everything that goes on in Russian politics at the moment?

Q: Will Vladimir Putin remain key to Russia's future?

A: There is very little doubt in the mind of most Russians that Vladimir Putin remains not only a central figure in the country's decision making, but is perhaps the main decision maker.

A recent opinion poll by an independent Levada-Center showed that 24 percent of Russians consider Putin to have the real power, compared to just 12 percent for his hand-picked successor, President Dmitry Medvedev.

As for the future, in the past year since Medvedev was sworn in, there is very little sign he has stamped his mark. It still looks to domestic and international audiences that Putin is calling the shots. At this point it's hard to see any evidence that the situation is going to change.

Source:http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/05/07/russia.analysis.chance/index.html