Translated material
Plantain
The plantain was appointed by the new Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation, Sergei Shoigu, a nominee of Yeltsin, the many years-21 years old-the main rescuer of Russia (since 1994- the head of the Ministry of Emergencies created by him), the last six months-the governor of the Moscow region. Why did Putin's choice fell on Shoigu? What will happen to the reform of the army that Serdyukov conducted? Finally, what signal was sent by the bureaucratic system? - The New Times asked experts 
“Shoigu has a planter gene - it is applied to all sick places in Russia” - such a joke appeared on social networks on the day of the appointment of Shoigu by the head of the Ministry of Defense. Indeed, for almost 20 years he headed the Ministry of Emergency Situations in his various incarnations and was dismissed in the last month of Medvedev’s presidency. The version then went on: in the conditions of mass protests, Putin was afraid to leave in a military department, who has more than 7 thousand military, an official not from the St. Petersburg clan, obliged by his career Boris Yeltsin and his environment, and besides, popularly popular were approved by 69% of respondents (the second most popular, according to the state VTIME, the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov I gained only 50%). However, according to the source in the government, Shoigu was actually removed from the Ministry of Emergencies for another reason: "Old, became familiar, and Dmitry Anatolyevich was looking for new people." Then why - returned, and even one of the most important posts in the country? “Shoigu took off incredibly, he never engaged in the work of this scale, after all, the Ministry of Emergencies is an extraordinary, the government joked:“ A team in the adoption of corpses ”, and MO is not only 1 million in the army, but also a huge VPK,” a well-aware interlocutor surprises.
Why?
Experts call five main reasons:
1. "For 12 years, Shoigu proved that he is faithful to Putin." Political scientist Gleb Pavlovsky agrees with this opinion: "Shoigu never showed real ambitions for the presidential post." “He is an effective performer and a strong -willed person who can be relying on, and Putin wants to maintain control over this area,” says Dmitry Train, Director of the Moscow Center of Carnegie.
2. "A person was needed not from the system of the Ministry of Defense, but at the same time in uniform." On November 6, Putin signed a decree returning Sergei Shoigu to military service with the rank of Army General. “Shoigu will be positively perceived by the Generalities who suffer from Serdyukov,” said Retired Major General Alexei Kondaurov.
3. Personnel hunger. “Vladimir Putin has no other personnel who would have a dignity of a decisive, not stupid person who can take responsibility,” said military analyst Alexander Golts. Resignation Colonel, ex-deputy of the State Duma Gennady Gudkov, also agrees with him: “Putin has a very short bench of spare ones.”
4. Shoigu will impeccably follow Putin’s instructions on changes in the army: “This post implies a complete power of attorney and willingness to continue the reform, which is in vain called Serdyukov’s reform. She should be called Putin's reform. And Shoiga is suitable for both criteria, ”says Pavlovsky. These instructions may also concern the distribution of the giant budget of the Moscow Region. Dmitry Train notes that “Shoigu will need to continue the transformation of those armed forces that were prepared for the Third World War and for the state that no longer (USSR): Putin's key decisions related to the army, especially the colossal funds allocated from the budget (20 trillion rubles only for the re -equipment of the army. - The New Times) indicate precisely such a trend - back to the USSR.” Pavel Baev, an employee of the Institute of Research of Peace Problems (Oslo), believes that the replacement of the draft army with a contract is a key question that will be faced with the new minister: “Shoigu, who turned the sloppy well of civil defense (in 1991, 20 thousand military defense military personnel were attached to the Ministry of Emergencies. - The New Times) to the professional corps of rescuers, is able to move this unbearable The task is from the place. " Then, however, the question of the loyalty of such an army will arise. “And here Putin will be strangled by nightmares,” Baev adds.
5. Send a signal by the system. According to Gleb Pavlovsky, “it is too early to talk about repressions and cleaning in the elite, but the element of intimidation of the bureaucratic apparatus is not excluded. Moreover, the Putin’s rules are disturbed among the elite: firstly, not to punish their own if they fulfill the task that the president sets before them (and Serdyukov was quite meticulous), and secondly, not to brighten the compromising circumstances. Putin never did this before. " According to General Kondaurov, the process of crossing the political map began: “Of course, Putin needs to strike at the headquarters, while corruption goes off scale. This is a well -known political combination. Putin needs to somehow reformat the political space. His main concern is the retention of power, and the retention of power takes place, including the change of elites. ”
Photos: Dmitry Azarov / Kommersant, Reuters