When he’s not threatening war against other European nations or conspiring against the United States, Russian President Vladimir Putin apparently has a soft spot for luxury watches.

Putin is believed to use luxury yachts, hangs out in a $550 million palace overlooking the Black Sea and reportedly owns shares in three major oil and gas companies. Putin may have a net worth of $70 billion, which would make him one of the richest people in the world. All of this is kept hidden slightly out of view, but Putin knows that wealth and power go hand in hand.

Putin’s collection of pricey wristwatches, are worth nearly $700,000 – about six times his official annual salary of 3,661,765 rubles, or about $115,000. The Russian Opposition group Solidarity produced a video that questioned how Putin could afford such a lavish collection, suggesting this was evidence of government fraud.

Putin has also been known to give the luxury replica watches away as gifts. He gave one of his watches, identified in the video as a Blancpain worth around $10,500, to a Siberian boy he met while on vacation in August 2009. He gave a similar watch to a factory worker in September 2009 and the video shows him tossing another Blancpain into wet cement at a construction site in August 2010.

Putin has also been seen wearing a $60,000 Patek Philippe Perpetual Calendar an $18,000 Patek Philippe Calatrava, a Breguet Marine worth $15,000, a $10,000 Blancpain Leman Flyback and a Blancpain Leman Aqua Lung Grande Date worth around $10,500.

The crown jewel appears to be the Tourbograph, a $500,000 masterpiece by German watchmaker A Lange & Sohne. It boasts platinum casing, gold-plated arms, sapphire-crystal glass and a hand-stitched crocodile leather strap.

Putin’s close friend, former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlisconi, is also known for his lavish lifestyle which includes a penchant for luxury timepieces, which he often gave as gifts. Wikileaks released confidential U.S. diplomatic cables that suggested Berlisconi had given Putin “lavish gifts” in exchange for lucrative energy contracts.

Blancpain worth $10,500

Putin with Berlisconi and Turkey’s prime minister in 2005

Vladimir Putin shows off one of his watches as he meets Angela Merkel in Berlin

Limited edition Blancpain Grande Date Aqua Lung

CHARLEY PHOTO OF THE WEEK: Another day spent being cute.