Russian President Vladimir Putin today dismissed four Deputy Ministers of Defense defense and appointed his relative Anna Tsivileva to one of the vacant positions, the Associated Press reported, quoted by BTA.
The Russian head of state signed decrees dismissing the deputy defense ministers Nikolai Pankov, Ruslan Tsalikov, Tatyana Shevtsova and Pavel Popov. According to Russian media, the newly appointed Tsivileva is the daughter of Putin's cousin.
Anna Tsivileva is the chairman of the "Defenders of the Fatherland" foundation. She will be responsible for the social and housing provision of the military and will bring these processes to a "new quality level", notes TASS.
First deputy of the Minister of Defense Andrey Belousov becomes Leonid Gornin, who until now held the post of Deputy Minister of Finance.
Among Belousov's newly appointed deputies is Pavel Fradkov, who is the son of former Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov. Prior to that, Fradkov held the position of first deputy manager of the presidential estates. His area of responsibility will include property management matters.
The fourth vacant place will be occupied by Oleg Saveliev, who was the auditor of the Audit Chamber until 2024.
Putin undertook the new reshuffle after appointing Belousov as defense minister last month, and longtime head of the department Sergei Shoigu was named head of Russia's Security Council. It seems that the Russian president is trying to appoint loyal people to the Ministry of Defense, AP commented.