WORLD NEWS
J.D. Lacroix, Monthly Herald Staff Writer, UK/USA Chief Correspondent
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Putin sacks his cabinet ahead of elections The dismissal of the deeply unpopular Mr. Kasyanov, whose government Mr. Putin has repeatedly blamed for the slow pace of reform, was widely expected. Yet its timing came as a surprise. Mr. Putin said the decision would clarify for the electorate how he would run Russia after his anticipated victory in the presidential poll on March 14. He said: "This decision bears no relation to any assessment of the performance of the former composition of the government, which I consider satisfactory on the whole. It was dictated by my desire to once again delineate my position on the issue of what development course the country will take after March 14." The personnel change is the first move in Mr. Putin's re-election campaign. He has no explicit manifesto, other than vague promises of continued reform and a stronger rule of law, made at his campaign launch two weeks ago. Mr. Kasyanov, appointed when Mr. Putin was elected in 2000, was widely considered a friend to the big business factions Kremlin hardliners have long had in their sights. He was also close to Mr. Putin's former chief of staff, Alexander Voloshin, who left his post shortly after the Kremlin ordered the arrest of Russia's richest man, Mikhail Khodorkovsky. Mr. Kasyanov criticised the arrest of Mr. Khodorkovsky and its effect on Russia's stock market. His departure spells an end to
the legacy of the Boris Yeltsin era in the federal government, and Mr
Putin will use the vacancy to install a loyalist. The successor, who
will be announced within a week, must be ratified within the following
week by parliament - in which the pro-Putin party has a two-thirds
majority. Mr. Kasyanov's deputy, Viktor Khristenko, was named the
temporary replacement. Two favourites for the post are from Mr. Putin's
hometown of St Petersburg. One, finance minister Alexei Kudrin, told
Interfax that the sacking decision was "correct, brave and
unconventional". His spokesman insisted Mr. Kudrin knew nothing of the
move until the televised speech. The more likely successor, defence
minister Sergei Ivanov, was at the Kremlin at the time of the
announcement, yet also declined to comment, saying he was attending a
routine meeting of the security council. Like Mr. Putin, he is a former
KGB officer. A charismatic and a fluent English speaker, he is
considered one of the more liberal of the hardliners around Mr. Putin.
Mr. Kasyanov made no comment, though his spokeswoman said he reacted
calmly to the news. An analyst, Boris Makarenko of the Political
Technologies Centre, said: "Kasyanov formed his system of elite links
and contacts in the Yeltsin era. A premier with an autonomous political
powerbase is incompatible with the system of power created by Putin."
The sacking is the first event of a contest dominated by the incumbent's
daily routines, his decision to abstain from conventional campaigning,
and the gripes of his three serious opponents. Libertarian Irina
Khakamada yesterday announced she might withdraw from the race because
media coverage was so biased. The Communist Nikolai Kharitonov and
leftwing nationalist Sergei Glazyev said they might follow suit. Some
analysts have said the Kremlin feared their complaints would have
dominated for the next 10 days what little critical news coverage
remains. Mr. Kharitonov told Interfax the president's decision was "a
public relations move" to ensure a high turnout. -Nick Patton |
