Moscow, Putin has chosen Belousov: who’s the economist who will handle the struggle in Ukraine | EUROtoday

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A really stunning alternative inside a extensively anticipated authorities reshuffle. If many anticipated the dismissal of Serghej Shoigu, Vladimir Putin's most loyal Defense Minister, the arrival in his place of Andrej Belousov, equally near the Russian president however a longtime economist, is sensational information. Interpreted with Putin's want to entrust the administration of the struggle to competent fingers find the assets essential to make it sustainable for the nation. For so long as vital.

War and economic system: the 2 absolute priorities on the agenda of the president, who took motion after the inauguration of his fifth mandate within the Kremlin. Intertwined priorities: Putin made this clear final week, telling commanders on the entrance that success in pursuing the nation's financial and social goals relies upon “on your success on the battlefield.” And vice versa: the nationwide economic system should be capable to help the struggle effort extra successfully. The information introduced by the Kremlin, one might due to this fact say, truly confirms the target that has guided Putin's each alternative for the reason that starting of the invasion. And Belousov has all the time been a supporter of the precedence that the state has over enterprise.

Why Belousov himself

Belousov's alternative «is smart – explains the British analyst and author Mark Galeotti -. In wartime the Minister of Defense is above all a monetary administrator who should make sure that the armed forces obtain every thing they want.” It is therefore not too strange that the minister is once again a civilian, with no real military experience. As Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesman, confirmed on Sunday evening, the chief of staff Valery Gherasimov – the general who is in charge of the management of the “particular army operation” in Ukraine and reports to the supreme commander, i.e. Putin – will remain in his place. Note, however, that Peskov said “for now.”

Born in Moscow in 1959 and graduated in Economics from Moscow State University, Belousov was active in the community of liberal economists. «A rare breed of economists, competent and state-oriented – says Konstantin Sonin, vice-rector of the Higher School of Economics in Moscow before being forced to emigrate to the USA in 2014 -. What made Belousov unique was that while older generation macroeconomists focused on broader, vaguer scenarios, the Belousov center was crunching numbers. At that time only foreign consultants and younger economists' centers did this at an appropriate level.'

In 2006 Belousov entered state service, referred to as to the Ministry of Economy as deputy by Gherman Gref, then probably the most distinguished liberal economists, now on the helm of Sberbank. Since then, Belousov has by no means distanced himself from Putin, following him through the interval wherein Putin turned prime minister, whereas Dmitry Medvedev changed him as president. He is credited with having predicted the good financial disaster of 2008 three years upfront.