Media reports say Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defense minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
In line with Russian law, the entire Russian Cabinet resigned on Monday following Putin’s inauguration in the Kremlin, and most members have been widely expected to keep their jobs, while Shoigu's fate appeared uncertain.
Citing the Kremlin, Russian media reports said Putin on May 12 signed a decree appointing Sergei Shoigu as Secretary of Russia's National Security Council.
The appointment was announced shortly after Putin proposed Andrei Belousov to become the country’s Defense Minister in place of Sergei Shoigu.
Belousov's candidacy will need to be approved by Russia's upper house of parliament, the Federation Council. It reported Sunday that Putin introduced proposals for other Cabinet positions as well, but Shoigu was the only minister on that list who is being replaced. Several other new candidates for federal ministers were proposed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, reappointed by Putin on May 10.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on May 12 that Putin had decided to give the defense minister role to a civilian because the ministry should be “open to innovation and cutting-edge ideas” and Belousov, who until recently served as the first deputy prime minister, is the right fit for the job.
Some experts note that Shoigu’s new appointment to Russia’s Security Council showed that the Russian leader viewed the institution as a political holding space.
Figures such as former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev have also been appointed to the Security Council: Medvedev has served as the deputy chairman of the Security Council since 2020.
Andrei Belousov (born March 17, 1959) is a former deputy prime minister who specializes in economics. He had served as deputy prime minister since January 2020.
Previously, he was an Economic Assistant to the President of Russia (2013-2020) and Minister of Economic Development (May 21, 2012 – June 24, 2013).
The Security Council of the Russian Federation (SCRF or Sovbez) is a constitutional consultative body of the Russian president that supports the president's decision-making on national security affairs and matters of strategic interest. Composed of Russia's top state officials and heads of defense and security agencies and chaired by the president of Russia, the SCRF acts as a forum for coordinating and integrating national security policy.
