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Putin promotes Ivanov

Vladimir Radyuhin

Move signals hardening ties towards U.S.

MOSCOW: Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov has been promoted to First Deputy Prime Minister in a new sign of Russia's hardening policy towards the United States declared by President Vladimir Putin last week.

Mr. Ivanov, who has always taken a tough line with the U.S., criticising the military build-up in Central Asia and Eastern Europe, has been a member of the inner circle of Mr. Putin's "politburo" which formulates the Kremlin's foreign and defence strategy. A career KGB officer, Mr. Ivanov served as Security Council Secretary in 1999-2001 and later as Defence Minister.

Announcing a Cabinet reshuffle on Thursday, Mr. Putin said he was broadening Mr. Ivanov's responsibilities. He will now oversee the defence industry and also "a part of the civil sector of the economy."

Mr. Putin made it clear he expects the defence industry, which is undergoing revival and consolidation, to act as a locomotive for Russia's growing economy. "I hope that whatever positive thing that has been done in the military-industrial complex will extend to the civil sector as well".

The elevation of a man often described in the West as a "hawk" came less than a week after Mr. Putin delivered his most scathing criticism of U.S. policies at a security conference in Munich, vowing to stand up to American domination. "Ivanov's promotion adds more weight to the defence component in Russian foreign policy," a political analyst said. "It is also a signal that Russia is back on world stage as a key player."

Mr. Ivanov's replacement as Defence Minister is Federal Tax Service chief Anatoly Serdyukov, who is credited with streamlining and improving tax collection since his appointment in 2004. By promoting Mr. Ivanov, Mr. Putin has placed him on the same level as the other First Deputy Prime Minister, Dmitry Medvedev.

The two men have been marked out as frontrunners to succeed Mr. Putin, who is barred by the Constitution from running for a third consecutive term.

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