Translated material
First degree resignation
The Russian President began Operation Elections by replacing the Prime Minister
“I heard you collect my quotes there. The more you collect them, the more you will see a through line. Analyze them all and you should see the content of the end-to-end design. If you see him, then I can calmly leave.”(Mikhail Fradkov at a meeting with government pool journalists on December 27, 2006)
Operation “Elections” has launched in Russia . The traditional Wednesday meeting between Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov and the president, reports of which are usually limited to the phrase “current issues of the socio-economic situation in the country were discussed,” ended unconventionally. The prime minister asked for his resignation . Although, according to Vremya Novostei, Mr. Fradkov himself had no intention of resigning. At least, the prime minister's schedule was formed until December 21 and ended with a visit to Hungary. However, this schedule can be adjusted to suit any prime minister.
The President accepted this “voluntary” resignation. And even with gratitude - Mikhail Fradkov, by presidential decree, was immediately awarded the highest order of the country - “For Services to the Fatherland”, first degree.
Less than two hours had passed when it became known that the head of state had submitted to the State Duma for approval for the post of prime minister the candidacy of the 65-year-old head of Rosfinmonitoring Viktor Zubkov , who back in March of this year was going to retire and could become a senator - first from Omsk , and then from the Leningrad region . Now it’s clear why he didn’t leave. The State Duma will approve Viktor Zubkov as prime minister on Friday, September 14, just before his 66th birthday.
One technical premier will be replaced by another. This appointment completely coincides with the logic of the appointment of Mikhail Fradkov himself. He is the same presidential “wild card” that none of the representatives of the country’s political elite expected to see in the prime minister’s post. But unlike Mr. Fradkov, Viktor Zubkov has known the president much longer, is much closer to him personally and is devoid of personal political ambitions. Therefore, the appointment of Mr. Zubkov allows the head of state to retain in his hands for some time the main political trump card: the ability to officially name a successor. At the same time, none of the most frequently mentioned successor candidates loses their chance to take the presidency, but their circle is diluted by a new character. After all, Viktor Zubkov is no worse suited for the role of “technical president” than for the role of “technical prime minister.” Until now, there has been only one successor in Russia - Vladimir Putin himself, who became president from the post of prime minister.
Addressing Vladimir Putin at their last meeting in their current status in the Kremlin, Mikhail Fradkov immediately outlined the motives for his long-predicted, but still unexpected resignation: “The country is on the eve of important political events, elections to the State Duma, elections of the President of Russia are ahead. The government is built into This process, it seems to me, works quite smoothly, it’s trying, but, understanding the political processes, I would like you to have complete freedom in choosing decisions, including personnel decisions.” And he continued: “I think that it would be more correct on my part to take the initiative to vacate the post of Prime Minister so that you do not have any restrictions in making decisions about building a power configuration in connection with upcoming political events... I would very much like to "I asked you, thanking you for your trust to serve as chairman of the government for more than three and a half years, using your support, to now ask you for your resignation."
The President did not argue: “Mikhail Efimovich, I completely agree with your assessment. Indeed, the government of the Russian Federation, under your leadership, has done a tremendous amount of work over the past years and achieved serious positive results.” And he began to praise the outgoing government: “The country’s GDP has been growing at a serious pace these years, every year the volume of economic development has increased, inflation has decreased, and the incomes of our citizens have grown significantly.” I didn’t forget to praise Mikhail Fradkov personally: “These are all the results of the government’s activities under your leadership. I thank you for the work that has been done. Such a large-scale work could not take place without some glitches and errors. I saw how deeply you felt about this, but, in my opinion, both you and all our colleagues strived to correct these mistakes as quickly as possible, as quickly and efficiently as possible.”
The president also confirmed that the replacement of the prime minister is connected with preparations for two decisive election campaigns for the current Russian authorities: “We are now approaching parliamentary elections, which will then gradually turn into presidential ones. And maybe you’re right, maybe we all need to work together think about how to design the structure of power and governance so that it better suits the pre-election period and prepares the country for the period after the parliamentary elections and after the presidential elections in March 2008."
After meeting with the president, who immediately left for Cheboksary, Mikhail Fradkov held a small emergency meeting of the government, where he called his resignation timely.
As one of the meeting participants told Vremya Novostey, Mr. Fradkov told his colleagues that the president awarded him the order and “could have left it at that.” But, added the acting premiere, did not stop there. Mr. Fradkov did not develop this topic, but it became clear to everyone that he had been offered a new job.
After this meeting, Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, answering the question whether Mr. Zubkov’s nomination for the post of prime minister and the resignation of the government was a surprise for him, said: “As for the candidacy for the post of prime minister - yes.” And added: “I must say that "Everyone is in a very good mood. Such a change was planned, it’s just that the time was not known." - the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations Sergei Shoigu gathered.
Alexey Kudrin did not rule out that new people will appear in the government of Viktor Zubkov, and said that consultations on the personnel composition of the cabinet are continuing. The head of the Ministry of Finance assured that they will not last long - immediately after the approval of the new prime minister, appointments of heads of ministries and departments will take place. True, when asked about his own fate in the government, the Minister of Finance answered evasively, saying that he had not yet discussed the issue of his possible appointment to the post of Minister of Finance. “I can say, I will always find a job I like,” Kudrin added, just in case.
The government headed by Mikhail Fradkov, dismissed by the president, worked for three and a half years. The cabinet was formed on March 9, 2004. Mikhail Fradkov was appointed chairman of the government on March 5, 2004 after the State Duma approved his candidacy. Recently there have been quite significant personnel changes in the government. Thus, in February of this year, the head of the government apparatus, Sergei Naryshkin, was appointed deputy prime minister. Sergei Ivanov, having lost the post of Minister of Defense, received the post of First Deputy Prime Minister, technically equal to the other main potential successor to the president, Dmitry Medvedev. At the same time, the president appointed the head of the Federal Tax Service, Anatoly Serdyukov, as head of the defense department.
According to Vremya Novostei, today there will be a scheduled government meeting dedicated to the eternal Russian topic - preparation for winter. And Mikhail Fradkov will conduct it. However, it is already clear that the government and the president are preparing not for winter, but for spring, when, according to the current Constitution, Russia should have a new popularly elected head of state. As for Viktor Zubkov, his role in the political history of the country and Operation Successor will become clearer only after the parliamentary elections, which will be held on December 2, 2007: apparently, we will not learn the name of the main candidate for the third president of Russia before the end of the year.
How premieres come and go
According to Art. 117 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation and Art. 35 of the federal constitutional law "On the Government of the Russian Federation", the chairman of the government is dismissed by the president: upon the resignation of the chairman of the government or in the event that the chairman of the government is unable to fulfill his powers. The President notifies the Federation Council and the State Duma of the Federal Assembly about the dismissal of the chairman of the government on the day the decision is made. Removal from the post of the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation simultaneously entails the resignation of the government. These provisions are provided for in Art. 7 of the federal constitutional law "On the Government of the Russian Federation".
In case of resignation or resignation, the Government of the Russian Federation, on behalf of the President, continues to act until the formation of a new government. According to Art. 111 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation is appointed by the President of the Russian Federation with the consent of the State Duma. A proposal for a candidacy for the chairman of the government is made no later than two weeks after the resignation of the government of the Russian Federation or within a week from the day the candidacy was rejected by the State Duma.
The State Duma considers the candidacy of the chairman of the government submitted by the president within a week from the date of submission of the proposal for the candidacy. According to Art. 112 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, no later than a week after his appointment, submits to the President of the Russian Federation proposals on the structure of federal executive bodies.
The Prime Minister proposes to the President candidates for the positions of Deputy Prime Minister and federal ministers.