Another Decade of Vlad?

Vladimir Putin, 62, told Russian news agency Tass he will step down as president of Russia no later than 2024, as required by Constitution of the Russian Federation, CBC News reports.

The Russian constitution limits the number of consecutive terms a president may serve to two, but places no limit on the total number of terms a president may serve, as long as the candidate sits out one term between stints in the nation's highest office.

Putin was first elected to the presidency in 2000 after many years in the KGB, the Soviet Union's largest intelligence-gathering outfit. After serving two four-year terms, he assumed the position of prime minister in 2008, the same year in which his handpicked successor, Dmitry Medvedev, signed legislation extending the term for president from four to six years. In May 2012, Putin was once again elected to the presidency after staying out of the office for the required one term.

In his interview with Tass, released Saturday, Putin reportedly expressed his contempt for those attempting to harm Russia and divide its people, including Western governments that have levied sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine. According to CBC, he described those who attempt to weaken the Russian state as "bacteria."

If Putin rules until 2024, he will have served longer than any other Russian leader besides Stalin, Daniel Kaufmann wrote in a Brookings Institute blog in 2012.

When Vlad does finally retire, what can we expect? Putin's hobbies include jurisprudence and literature, according to Chinese state press agency Xinhua. Watch out, Tolstoy.