Vladimir Putin sworn in for fourth term, backed by Orthodox Church's Patriarch Kirill.
Standing in the ornately-decorated Andreyevsky Hall of the Grand Kremlin Palace, with his hand on a gold-embossed copy of the constitution, Putin, 65, swore to serve the Russian people, to safeguard rights and freedoms, and protect Russian sovereignty.
Immediately after the ceremony he attended a prayer service at the Cathedral of the Annunciation in Moscow.
ReutersIn the front row for Putin's swearing in ceremony was German ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, now in charge of a branch of Russian gas giant Gazprom, alongside Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and Orthodox Church Patriarch Kirill.
Putin won the new six-year term after more than 70 per cent of voters backed him in a March 18 presidential election. His most dangerous challenger, Alexei Navalny, was not allowed to take part. Navalny was detained on Saturday at a protest called under the slogan: 'Putin is not our tsar.'
Soon after the inauguration ceremony, the Kremlin issued a statement saying that Putin had nominated Dmitry Medvedev to be prime minister in his new term. Medvedev, a loyal Putin lieutenant, has held the job since 2012.
The appointment needs to be approved by the lower house of parliament, but that is likely to be a formality because the chamber is dominated by Kremlin loyalists.
Some Kremlin-watchers had speculated Putin might bring in a fresh face as prime minister to kick-start reforms of the sluggish economy and revive foreign investment curtailed by stand-offs with the West.
