Russian lawmakers approve return of Putin’s choice of Mikhail Mishustin as PM

MOSCOW - The Lower House of Russia’s Parliament voted on May 10 to approve the nomination of technocrat Mikhail Mishustin as prime minister, a position he has held since 2020.

Russia’s government resigned automatically after President Vladimir Putin’s

inauguration on May 7

following his re-election, and he nominated Mr Mishustin, 58, to continue leading the Cabinet.

Mr Mishustin has helped Mr Putin through the war in Ukraine and the economic challenges wrought by Western sanctions over Russia’s invasion.

There is no indication that Mr Putin plans a big reshuffle of the government, which includes veteran Sergei Shoigu, in charge of Russia’s defence since 2012, and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in charge of Russia’s diplomacy for two decades.

Keeping his government intact would send a message of stability and of Mr Putin’s satisfaction with his team’s progress at home and abroad, analysts say.

“President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin submitted to the State Duma a proposal on the candidacy of Mikhail Vladimirovich Mishustin for the post of chairman of the government,” the speaker of the Duma, Mr Vyacheslav Volodin, said on the Telegram messaging app.

“Today, deputies will make a responsible decision on behalf of their constituents on this issue,” Mr Volodin said.

He said that when Mr Mishustin speaks in the Duma before the vote, he would have to answer how he will solve a number of tasks set by Mr Putin for the government, including “economic and regional development, and increasing the defence capability of our country”.

Low-profile bureaucrat keeps economy afloat

Mr Mishustin, a career bureaucrat, was said to have no political ambitions before Mr Putin tapped him as prime minister in 2020. With no background in the security services, he is not part of the so-called siloviki (strongmen) faction of intelligence veterans close to Mr Putin.

While keeping a low profile, however, Mr Mishustin has been credited with keeping Russia’s economy afloat after Kyiv’s allies hit the country with sanctions that have greatly complicated financing for Russian businesses and curtailed markets for the country’s vast natural resources.

Before becoming prime minister, Mr Mishustin headed the federal tax service for a decade, where he was credited with more than doubling revenues.

In October, with Russia facing increasing sanctions, Mr Mishustin said Moscow would simplify procedures for citizens and companies from 25 “friendly” countries – including China, India, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kazakhstan and Belarus – to invest in Russia.

At a perilous moment for Mr Putin in June 2023, Mr Mishustin said Russia must rally around the President as an abortive mutiny by mercenaries fighting in Ukraine had presented “a challenge to its stability”.

“For this, the consolidation of the whole of society is especially important. We need to act together, as one team, and maintain the unity of all forces, rallying around the President,” he said. REUTERS