“WHOSE proposals do you listen to, who do you trust?” So asked three journalists writing Vladimir Putin’s biography when he first took office 17 years ago. “Who do I trust? Sergei Ivanov,” the then largely unknown Mr Putin responded. Mr Ivanov, a former KGB man from Mr Putin’s home town of Leningrad, has stood by Mr Putin’s side ever since, first as defence minister, then as deputy prime minister and, since 2011, as Mr Putin’s powerful chief of staff. On August 12th, Mr Putin unexpectedly dismissed Mr Ivanov, demoting him to special representative for ecology and transportation.
Mr Ivanov’s firing marks a major shake-up within the Kremlin, and comes at a sensitive time. Parliamentary elections loom in mid-September, at a time when the economy is under strain. And tension with Ukraine is escalating over Russian claims that Ukraine attempted to stage a terrorist attack in Crimea; Russia deployed powerful S-400 air defence systems to Crimea, while Dmitry Medvedev, the prime minister, warned that diplomatic relations with Ukraine could be severed.
Long considered one of the most influential figures in the Russian elite, Mr...Continue reading
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