Holding hands of his key figures, Russian Prez Vladimir Putin reshuffles his cabinet

NewsBharati    19-May-2018
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Moscow, May 19: Months after Russian President Vladimir Putin regained his throne as the tsar, he reshuffled his Cabinet on Friday, replacing some longtime members while keeping key figures in place. Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev presented the candidates for ministerial posts at a meeting with Putin in Sochi, and the president approved his proposals.

 

Earlier this month, Putin re-appointed Medvedev, who has been prime minister since 2012 after serving as Russia's president for the previous four years while Putin switched to the premiership because of term limits.

Many key Cabinet figures, including Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, and Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, are staying. Siluanov, the main architect of Putin's economic policies, was also promoted to hold the post of first deputy prime minister.

Other key members of Putin's economic team Economics Minister Maxim Oreshkin, Industry, and Trade Minister Denis Manturov and Energy Minister Alexander Novak also retained their positions.

However, Igor Shuvalov, who previously held the post of first deputy prime minister, is not in the new Cabinet, and Arkady Dvorkovich, a longtime Medvedev's ally who served as a deputy prime minister, has also left. Another Cabinet member to lose his seat is Dmitry Rogozin, who served as a deputy prime minister in charge of military and space industries.

Some Cabinet members have kept their seats despite fierce public criticism. One is Vitaly Mutko, who was in charge of sports and faced broad criticism over doping scandals that haunted Russian sports. Mutko was named a deputy prime minister in charge of construction industries.

Another holdover is Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky, who kept his seat even though he long was rumored to be on his way out.