Nikolai Patrushev

| birth_place = Leningrad, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union | death_date = | death_place = | education = Leningrad Shipbuilding Institute | children = 2, including Dmitry | alma_mater = | allegiance = Russia
Soviet Union | branch = Federal Security Service | serviceyears = 1975–2008 | rank = General of the Army | awards = Hero of the Russian Federation | native_name = | native_name_lang = ru }} Nikolai Platonovich Patrushev (; born 11 July 1951) is a Russian politician, security officer and former intelligence officer who served as the secretary of the Security Council of Russia from 2008 to 2024. He previously served as the director of the Federal Security Service (FSB) from 1999 to 2008. Belonging to the ''siloviki'' faction of president Vladimir Putin's inner circle, Patrushev is believed to be one of the closest advisors to Putin and a leading figure behind Russia's national security affairs. He played a key role in the decisions to seize and then annex Crimea in 2014 and to invade Ukraine in 2022. Provided by Wikipedia