News Desk
MOSCOW — Vladimir V. Putin was inaugurated for a fifth term as president of Russia on Tuesday, solidifying his two-decade grip on power in a ceremony at the Grand Kremlin Palace that underscored his increasing estrangement from the West.
Mr. Putin, 71, took the oath of office by placing his hand on an updated version of Russia’s Constitution that incorporated amendments adopted in 2020 as well as the annexation of four Ukrainian regions following referendums last year. The move to formalize the absorption of those territories helped precipitate Russia’s broader invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The inauguration ritual, first used in its current form in 1996 when Boris N. Yeltsin began his second term, calls for the president to arrive at the ceremonial palace by car from his workplace nearby, the Kremlin. There, lawmakers from both houses of Parliament and justices of the Constitutional Court bore witness as Mr. Putin vowed to “serve the people of Russia” and uphold its sovereignty.
Valery D. Zorkin, the chief justice of the Constitutional Court, then declared Mr. Putin as president for another six years, a tenure that could extend his time at Russia’s helm to 2030, making him the longest-serving Moscow leader since Stalin.
The ceremony came at a time of escalating tensions between Russia and Western nations over the war in Ukraine. Just two days earlier, Mr. Putin had ordered the Russian nuclear forces to conduct drills involving tactical nuclear weapons, a move seen as calibrating risks in the conflict.
