All the president’s men

Two weeks after the appointment and one week after he received the Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s proposals, President Vladimir Putin approved on Monday the list with the new Russian government.

The nomination and discussion process of applications was, as usual, totally lacking in transparency.

According to the Constitution, the President approves the structure and composition of government on the proposals of the Prime Minister (appointed by him) and without needing the consent of Parliament, so the last word lies with the Kremlin.

But this time, this "word" was waited more than usual, President Putin motivating and even the absence at the G8 summit through the need to focus on forming the new cabinet.

The key minister have kept their positions

Beyond the official explanation, Russian commentators mention the need to find a balance between the "President’s people" and the "Prime Minister’s people", to alleviate the frictions at the elite level, but also to "adjust" the list based on past events, including the people demonstrations of opposition.

Within the new government will be a single prime-vice premier instead of 2, 6 vice premiers and 21 ministers instead of 19.

New, there are 2 vice premiers and 15 ministers.

Despite the renewal of the cabinet, the key ministers have kept their positions.

Among them are the first vice-premier Igor Shuvalov, the foreign affairs titular Sergei Lavrov, at Defense Anatoly Serdyukov and Anton Siluanov at Finance.

In the top echelon of the executive vice-premiers Dmitry Rogozin has kept his position, the responsible for the defense industry, Dmitry Kozak, who is responsible for organizing the 2014 Winter Olympics from Sochi, Alexander Hloponin, the president’s representative for North Caucasus region, as former "gray eminence" and the chief ideologue of Kremlin, Vladislav Surkov, who took over the important position of head of the Government.

At this level there is observed the expected departure of first vice-premier Viktor Zubkov, the former prime minister and the senior member of the Executive, but, especially, of the vice-premier Igor Sechin, the responsible for energy sector.

The tsar of energy

Sechin, a close friend of Putin, a former colleague with him in the KGB, was one of the most influential members of the former government, called in the Western media the "energy czar".

The analysts have predicted Sechin's departure given the tense relations with Dmitry Medvedev.

In its place, the energy will be endorsed by the new vice-premier Arkadii Dvorkovich, Medvedev's economic adviser in his presidency period, but he does not have practical energy experience.

Some commentators consider that Igor Sechin will maintain his influence in the most important sector of Russian economy, taking the lead state corporation that controls, among other things, the Rosneft Company, the largest oil company in Russia.

At the Ministry of Energy leading, Sergei Shmatko was replaced by another person from "outside", the former adjunct Finance Minister Alexander Novak.

Traditionally, however, the crucial decisions in this sector are taken by Vladimir Putin.

The gray eminence of Kremlin

According to analysts, this government is more the government of Putin, than Medvedev's, it is shown also by the positions empowering of one of its most influential members - Igor Shuvalov, the only first vice-premier remained.

Loyal to the President, Shuvalocv is one of the most skillful manipulators of behind Russian policy, described as a moderator between various elite groups, and a qualified partner for dialogue with the West.

He has the merit of 18 years to complete negotiations on Russia's accession to the WTO.

Shuvalov is seen in business and financial environments as the supporter of the liberal line in the economy.

Not unimportant is the fact that his name was floated in the press and analytical media as a possible alternative of Medvedev for prime minister position.

In recent months, Shuvalov was strongly attacked in Russian and Western media because of his businesses of hundreds of millions of dollars, controlled nominally by his wife, which would make him incompatible with the membership position of the government.

Maintaining its position of first vice-premier, possible only with Putin’s agreement, shows the confidence that Shuvalov enjoys in the eyes of the Kremlin leader.

Modifications within the economic block

The Government's economic block, led by Shuvalov, suffered the most changes.

If the Finance Minister Anton Siluanov kept his portfolio, Elvira Nabiullina, one of the members appreciated of the former executive, left the important Ministry of Economic Development for his adjunct Andrei Belousov, also a "President’s man".

There were replaced the ministers of transport, of natural resources , of environment, of agriculture, of communications.

Communications Minister became Nikolai Nikiforov, who held this position in the regional government of the Republic of Tatarstan, and who, at the age of 29, is the youngest member of the cabinet.

The controversial Education Minister Andrei Fursenko, another close friend of Putin, was changed with the academics Dmitry Livanov.

Fursenko thus leaves the presidency of the Russian party in Romanian-Russian Intergovernmental Commission for economic cooperation and technical-scientific.

The fewest changes occurred in the block of directly subordinate ministers to the president.

Besides Serghie Iawor and Anatoly Serdyukov, the Justice Minister Alksxandr Konovalov kept his function, a protégé of Dmitry Medvedev.

The only change in the "power block", but a notorious one, is the Ministry of Interior, a huge militarized structure nearly 1.8 million employees, and one of the "pillars" of the regime.

Here, the Moscow police chief Vladimir Kolokoltsev, replaced another Putin's faithful, Rashid Nurgaliyev.

His departure is linked to numerous scandals triggered by police abuse that started highly negative reactions in society and have made him responsible for failure of the reform ministry, initiated by former President Medvedev.

At the same time, the appointment of general Kolokoltsev, who led the intervention of OMON Special Forces against harsh anti-Putin demonstration of May 6, is seen as a reward for the proved loyalty, but also an explicit warning against the opposition that continues to demand Putin’s resignation and organizing new parliamentary and presidential elections, instead of those they consider rigged.

Translated by Alexandra-Diana Mircea

MTTLC, Bucharest University