MOSCOW, RUSSIA - DECEMBER, 28 (RUSSIA OUT) Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a reception for military servicemen who took part in Syrian campaign, at Grand Kremlin Palace on December 28,2017 in Moscow, Russia. Putin awadred dozens soldiers and officers of Russian Defence Minister who destingueshed themseves during the military operation in Syria. (Photo by Mikhail Svetlov/Getty Images)
Pro-Kremlin activists carry flags of of the ruling party United Russia as they march in Moscow, on March 15, 2014, during a rally in support of recent Russia's move on Crimea. Around 50,000 people rallied today in central Moscow in protest at Russia's intervention in Ukraine, a day before the Crimean peninsula is expected to vote on switching to Kremlin rule, an AFP team estimated. A rival demonstration, which appeared to be well-organised, attracted 15,000 people in support of Putin, police estimated. AFP PHOTO / DMITRY SEREBRYAKOV (Photo credit should read DMITRY SEREBRYAKOV/AFP via Getty Images)
MOSCOW, RUSSIA - DECEMBER 12: Supporters of Vladimir Putin's United Russia's Party along with activists of the pro-Kremlin youth movement Young Guard of United Russia rally in support of the results of December 4 parliamentary election at Mamezhnaya Square just outside of Kremlin December 12, 2011 in Moscow, Russia. Protests took place in Moscow and St. Petersburg this week amid allegations from both domestic critics and international observers that the recent Duma Elections were rigged. Russia's ruling party, United Russia, lost their parliamentary majority but still won close to 49.5 percent of the vote. (Photo by Konstantin Zavrazhin/Getty Images)
Activists of pro-Kremlin youth groups "Moldaya gvardiya" and "Nashi" ("Young guard" and "Ours") attend a rally as they celebrate the victory of United Russia party in the parliamentary elections in central Moscow on December 5, 2011. The ruling party of Vladimir Putin won Russia's parliamentary elections but with a sharply reduced majority, in a blow for the strongman ahead of his planned return to the Kremlin in 2012. AFP PHOTO / NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA (Photo credit should read NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)
Pro-Kremlin activists rally in southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don, on March 18, 2014, to celebrate the incorporation of Crimea. President Vladimir Putin pushed today every emotional button of the collective Russian psyche as he justified the incorporation of Crimea, citing everything from ancient history to Russia's demand for respect to Western double standards. AFP PHOTO / SERGEI VENYAVSKY (Photo credit should read SERGEI VENYAVSKY/AFP via Getty Images)
