For the second year in a row, Russia's President Vladimir Putin tops Forbes' annual list of the world's 72 most powerful people.
The list includes 17 world leaders who control nations with a combined GDP of $48 trillion, and 39 CEOs whose companies rake in $3.6 trillion in annual revenues.
For the second year in a row, Russia's President Vladimir Putin tops Forbes' annual list of the world's 72 most powerful people.
Above: President Vladimir Putin seen facing reporters after his annual "Direct Line with Vladimir Putin" call-in live broadcast at Gostiny Dvor, April 17, 2014.
Above: President Vladimir Putin seen facing reporters after his annual "Direct Line with Vladimir Putin" call-in live broadcast at Gostiny Dvor, April 17, 2014.
The list includes 17 world leaders who control nations with a combined GDP of $48 trillion, and 39 CEOs whose companies rake in $3.6 trillion in annual revenues.
Above: Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo courtesy of the Press Service of the Russian President.
Above: Russian President Vladimir Putin. Photo courtesy of the Press Service of the Russian President.
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© Fotobank.ru/Getty Images / Olivier Douliery-Pool
US President Barack Obama came in second place, as he did last year.
Above: US President Barack Obama speaks at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on October 17, 2014 in Washington, DC.
Above: US President Barack Obama speaks at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau on October 17, 2014 in Washington, DC.
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© Fotobank.ru/Getty Images / SeongJoon Cho
Chinese leader Xi Jinping took third place.
Above: Xi Jinping, China's president, arrives on stage to deliver a speech at Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday, July 4, 2014.
Above: Xi Jinping, China's president, arrives on stage to deliver a speech at Seoul National University in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday, July 4, 2014.
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© Fotobank.ru/Getty Images / Franco Origlia
Pope Francis, the reigning pope who made it his mission to transform the longstanding conservative image of the Catholic Church, ranked fourth.
Above: Pope Francis waves to the faithful as he arrives in St. Peter's square for his weekly public address on October 8, 2014 in Vatican City, Vatican.
Above: Pope Francis waves to the faithful as he arrives in St. Peter's square for his weekly public address on October 8, 2014 in Vatican City, Vatican.
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© AP Photo / Markus Schreiber
Ranking fifth, Angela Merkel thus became the 'most powerful' woman in the list.
Above: German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) arrives for her annual summer press conference ahead of her vacations at the Federal Press Conference association in Berlin, Germany, Friday, July 18, 2014.
Above: German Chancellor Angela Merkel (C) arrives for her annual summer press conference ahead of her vacations at the Federal Press Conference association in Berlin, Germany, Friday, July 18, 2014.
Chief of the US Federal Reserve, Janet Yellen, the first woman to lead the most influential central bank in the world, ranked as the sixth most powerful person in the world, according to Forbes.
Above: Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen tours a work training facility in Chelsea, Massachusetts, October 16, 2014.
Above: Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen tours a work training facility in Chelsea, Massachusetts, October 16, 2014.
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© East News / UPI Photo/keizo Mori
Billionaire, philantropist and a former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates, whose foundation in September pledged $50 million to fight Ebola in West Africa, was ranked seventh.
Above: Microsoft Corporation Chairman, Bill Gates, announced two new initiatives at a press conference in Tokyo, Japan on May 7, 2008.
Above: Microsoft Corporation Chairman, Bill Gates, announced two new initiatives at a press conference in Tokyo, Japan on May 7, 2008.
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© East News / Luo Huanhuan
President of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi holds the eighth rank in the Forbes' list.
Above: The European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi speaks at a press conference in Frankfurt, Germany, August 7, 2014.
Above: The European Central Bank (ECB) president Mario Draghi speaks at a press conference in Frankfurt, Germany, August 7, 2014.
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© AP Photo / Eric Risberg
Google co-founder Sergey Brin shared the ninth place with his business partner, Larry Page.
Above: Google co-founder Sergey Brin stands on stage at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California as a bill is signed by state governor Edmund G. Brown Jr., giving the go-ahead to driverless cars in California, Tuesday, September 25, 2012.
Above: Google co-founder Sergey Brin stands on stage at Google headquarters in Mountain View, California as a bill is signed by state governor Edmund G. Brown Jr., giving the go-ahead to driverless cars in California, Tuesday, September 25, 2012.
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© East News / Photoshot/REPORTER/Dennis Van Tine
Page and Brin were essentially ranked as Forbes' 'most powerful' people in business.
Above: Google CEO Larry Page holds a press annoucement at Google headquarters in New York on May 21, 2012.
Above: Google CEO Larry Page holds a press annoucement at Google headquarters in New York on May 21, 2012.
Igor Sechin, CEO of the oil company Rosneft, made 42nd place in the Forbes list of the world's most powerful people.
Above: Igor Sechin, President and CEO, Rosneft Oil Company, seen in Novo-Ogaryovo, anticipating President Vladimir Putin's meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the deputy commander-in-chief of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, in Russia on a routine visit.
Above: Igor Sechin, President and CEO, Rosneft Oil Company, seen in Novo-Ogaryovo, anticipating President Vladimir Putin's meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the deputy commander-in-chief of the United Arab Emirates Armed Forces, in Russia on a routine visit.
Russian gas giant Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller ranked 47th on the Forbes list.
Above: Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) meets with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller. April 3, 2013.
Above: Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) meets with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller. April 3, 2013.
