Editor's note: As Vladimir Putin's inauguration May 7 marks the beginning of his third term as president of Russia, Stratfor looks back at our previous assessments of Putin's leadership and forecasts of Russia's return to global prominence. In 2000 , Stratfor assessed how newly elected President Putin would assert his power: centralizing control over Russia's regions, clamping down on the militant Caucasus, purging the Russian oligarchs, controlling the economy and forging strategic foreign relationships (such as with Germany). In 2005, Stratfor reassessed Putin's situation after his first presidential term and laid out how his leadership was in line with the role Russian leaders inevitably play in this stage of the country's historical cycle. Looking forward, Stratfor sees Putin's leadership moving Russia into the next stage where Russia solidifies its resurgence into most of its former sphere of influence. Russian opposition members rallied in Moscow's Pushkin Square on April 14.