“More actively implement national projects”: how the composition of the economic bloc of the government has changed

On Tuesday, January 21, Vladimir Putin approved the new composition of the Russian government. The president called the main task of the current cabinet "increasing the welfare of citizens."

Significant changes have occurred in the economic bloc. According to Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, in the updated composition, the government should launch a new investment cycle and create conditions for economic growth.

“We need to more actively implement national projects so that people feel the changes in their lives in the near future and around themselves. I hope that this will not happen in individual cities, but will occur throughout the country, ”Mishustin said.

According to the decree of the president, Anton Siluanov left the post of first deputy prime minister. Now this post is occupied by the former assistant to the president on economic issues Andrey Belousov.

Belousov is 60 years old. In 1981, he graduated from the Economics Department of Moscow State University, after which he worked at the Central Economics and Mathematics Institute of the USSR Academy of Sciences. Since 2000, he led the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Forecasting, and in 2006 became Deputy Minister of Economic Development. While working in the ministry, Belousov received the title of Honored Economist of Russia. In 2012, he became the head of the department, and a year later he was appointed assistant to the president.

As follows from the presidential decree, in the new government, the post of head of the Ministry of Economic Development will be transferred from Maxim Oreshkin to the former governor of Perm Territory Maxim Reshetnikov.

Reshetnikov is 40 years old. In 2000, he graduated from the Faculty of Economics of Perm State University, after which he worked in the administration of the Perm Territory. In 2009, he entered the first hundred personnel reserve of the President of Russia and headed the administration of the governor of the Perm Territory. Later he worked in the Office of the Government of Russia, the Government of Moscow, and since 2017 he was Governor of the Perm Territory.

Maxim Oreshkin headed the Ministry of Economic Development since November 2016. At the time of his appointment, he was only 34 years old - he became the youngest minister in the Medvedev government. Oreshkin’s predecessor, Alexei Ulyukaev, was dismissed due to the loss of confidence and sentenced to eight years in prison for a bribe.

According to experts interviewed by RT, Oreshkin spent a relatively short time as minister, and therefore did not manage to undergo serious structural changes in the economy. Meanwhile, one of the main achievements of Maxim Oreshkin was a change in the image of the Ministry of Economic Development.

“Under the previous ministers of the Ministry of Economic Development, the impression was a cumbersome and ineffective bureaucratic structure, and the arrest of Ulyukaev, one might say, left a thick spot on the reputation of the ministry. Oreshkin managed to almost completely save the department from such an unsympathetic heritage, ”Natalya Milchakova, deputy head of the Alpari information and analytical center, said in an interview with RT.

In addition to personnel changes, the updated cabinet did not do without intra-departmental changes. Now the Federal Property Management Agency will become subordinate to the Ministry of Finance from the Ministry of Economic Development. At the same time, Vladimir Putin abolished the Ministry of Northern Caucasus Affairs. According to the presidential decree, the functions of the department will be transferred to the Ministry of Economic Development.

In the same place

After resigning as First Deputy Prime Minister, Anton Siluanov will retain the post of Minister of Finance of the country. Note that he has been managing the Ministry of Finance since December 2011 and is considered one of the "old-timers" of the Russian government.

After graduating from the Moscow Financial Institute in 1985, Anton Siluanov worked in the Ministry of Finance for all subsequent years. Before heading the department, he managed to be the head of the department of budget management, the head of the department of macroeconomic policy and banking, the director of the department of intergovernmental relations and the deputy minister.

The main merits of the Ministry of Finance under Siluanov are considered to be the creation of a budget rule and joint work with the Central Bank to fill the National Welfare Fund (NWF). According to experts, the ministry’s policy made it possible to reduce the ruble’s dependence on oil prices and create a financial “safety cushion” for the Russian economy in case of external shocks.

Moreover, under Siluanov, the Russian budget again became surplus. So, in 2018, the revenues of the state treasury exceeded expenses for the first time in seven years. It is expected that the current state of affairs will continue in the coming years.

“During the crisis in 2014-2015, after the introduction of anti-Russian sanctions and the fall in oil prices, Siluanov was able, as much as possible, to smooth out the negative effect and support the economy. Competent fiscal policy led to the fact that in 2020 Russia has one of the lowest debt levels in the world (90% of GDP), foreign exchange reserves returned to the pre-crisis level, and the accumulated funds of the National Wealth Fund exceeded 7 trillion rubles, ”said RT Director BCS Broker sales office Vyacheslav Abramov.

According to the presidential decree, the head of the Russian Ministry of Energy, Alexander Novak, will also retain his position. He has been managing the department since 2012.

Alexander Novak received two higher educations - at the Norilsk Industrial Institute in Economics and Management in Metallurgy, as well as at the Moscow State Institute in Management.

Initially, the work of Alexander Novak was far from the activities of the government. From 1988 to 2000, he held various positions at the Norilsk Mining and Metallurgical Combine named after A.P. Zavenyagin. After leaving metallurgy, Novak was the deputy head of Norilsk, worked in the administration of the Krasnoyarsk Territory, and from 2008 to 2012 he served as deputy head of the Ministry of Finance.

One of Novak’s key achievements as head of the Ministry of Energy was the conclusion of the OPEC + deal with Saudi Arabia and other oil exporting countries. As Natalia Milchakova said in an interview with RT, the agreement allowed to balance the global energy market and restore oil prices after a sharp fall in 2014.

“Under Novak, an OPEC + agreement arose, in which Russia plays a major role together with Saudi Arabia, launched the Yamal LNG project, built a year-round port of Sabetta on the Yamal Peninsula, created an energy bridge in the Crimea, and independent gas producers were able to export LNG abroad. It should also be noted that the heads of the Arab countries that are members of OPEC are negotiating with the Russian Minister of Energy on an equal footing, and this emphasizes respect for Russia and the Russian Ministry of Energy in particular from our partners, ”said Milchakova.