As Donald Trump’s victory in the U.S. presidential election reverberates around the world, Vladimir Putin is making sure he’ll remain a force to be reckoned with for the next tenant of the White House. Putin is setting up a team to ensure he wins a fourth term with a wide margin in 2018, according to five people close to the process. Kiriyenko’s mandate goes beyond the elections, according to the people who’ve discussed it with him. Almost two-thirds of Russians want to see him continue after 2018, according to a survey by the independent polling company Levada. “It’s not just the 2018 presidential election that depends on Kiriyenko,” said Boris Makarenko, president of the Center for Political Technologies in Moscow.

Source: National Post November 18, 2016 19:05 UTC