As he begins a new term, Putin pushes lofty goals for Russia

If Vladimir Putin fulfills the goals he's set for his new six-year term as president, Russia in 2024 will be far advanced in new technologies and artificial intelligence, many of its notoriously poor roads will be improved, and its people will be living significantly longer.

There's wide doubt about how much of that he'll achieve, if any of it. Analysts assessing the prospects of his term that begins with Monday's inauguration often use the expression "neo-stagnation."

Putin won the new term, which will extend his rule in Russia to a quarter-century if he completes it, with an official tally of 77 percent of the vote in March. Yet, when state pollster VTsIOM asked Russians a month later which politician they trusted to solve the country's problems, only 47 percent chose Putin.

Source: AP