MOSCOW (Sputnik) — According to VTsIOM, Putin's approval rating started growing in March 2014 and rose to 86 percent in May, while in February of the same year it stood at only 64 percent.
"The growth of the approval had been recorded during the Crimean events [reunification with Russia] in spring 2014. And the index has been remaining at a high level for 16 years. During last year and a half, rating has remained stably high — above 84 percent," VTsIOM reported.
In November 2014, Forbes magazine named the Russian president the world's most powerful person. Putin was also ranked third in Time magazine's Person of the Year 2014 list.
