Putin, in a surprise Move, dissolves Russian government
Pastor Dale Morgan
Putin, in a surprise Move, dissolves Russian government*
* Story Highlights
* NEW: Putin dismisses his long-serving prime minister, appoints Zubkov
* NEW: Cabinet official Zubkov now in the running to replace Putin
next year
* NEW: Putin says shakeup necessary to help nation prepare for elections
MOSCOW, Russia (AP) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin dismissed his
long-serving prime minister Wednesday and nominated little-known Cabinet
official Victor Zubkov to replace him in a surprise move that could put
Zubkov in the running to replace Putin next year.
Putin's nomination of a little-known Cabinet official apparently caught
Russia's political elite off-guard.
The nomination of Zubkov, who currently oversees the government's fight
against money-laundering, appeared to have caught much of the Russian
political elite off-guard.
Putin had been expected to announce in December whom he would back to
run for president next year -- and Russia's two first deputy prime
ministers -- former Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov and gas giant Gazprom
board chairman Dmitry Medvedev -- were widely considered to be the
leading contenders.
After dismissing Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov -- triggering the
government's automatic dissolution -- Putin explained the shakeup was
required to "prepare the country" for forthcoming elections.
Legislative elections are to be held December 2, and presidential
elections are expected three months later.
State Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov backed the 65-year-old Zubkov's
nomination, saying his "life path and professional activities in various
fields undoubtedly allow him to lead the Cabinet of the Russian Federation."
He said the lower house of parliament, the State Duma, could vote on the
nomination as early as Friday.
Zubkov's position in the Cabinet was relatively obscure; the Financial
Monitoring Service he headed is an arm of the Finance Ministry that
investigated money-laundering.
Zubkov also served under Putin when the two worked in the city
administration of St. Petersburg in the early 1990s. Putin has regularly
tapped former colleagues from St. Petersburg to head top posts in the
government.
Putin is wildly popular among Russians, having brought stability and
relative prosperity after the often chaotic presidency of his
predecessor, Boris Yeltsin. As a result, whoever is nominated for the
presidency by Putin is expected to win easily.