Putin's inner circle – in pictures

Head of Russia's SVR intelligence service Sergei Naryshkin has seen his status eroded by the strong resistance encountered in Ukraine, which he did not foresee. EPA
Head of Russia's Roscosmos space agency Dmitry Rogozin has threatened to abandon a Nasa astronaut on the International Space Station. AFP
Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu was one of the architects of Moscow's intervention in Syria. AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Russia's oil giant Rosneft chief Igor Sechin. He has been described as Mr Putin's right-hand man. AFP
Secretary of Russia's Security Council Nikolai Patrushev attends a meeting in Moscow. He is said to have known Mr Putin for 50 years. AFP
Sergei Ivanov, Russian special representative on questions of ecology and transport, is a close friend of Mr Putin. AFP
Federal Security Service director Alexander Bortnikov is responsible for a huge network of agents in Russia. AFP
At 58, president of the Duma Lower House of Parliament Vyacheslav Volodin is one of the younger members of the inner circle. He has been touted as a possible successor to Mr Putin. AFP