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Zubkov is Russian Premier

Viktor Zubkov

MOSCOW: President Vladimir Putin has appointed a new Prime Minister in what is seen as a step in reshaping the power configuration in the Kremlin as he prepares to hand over presidency to a successor next year.

Mr. Putin named head of Russia’s money laundering watchdog Viktor Zubkov as Prime Minister on Wednesday, shortly after accepting the resignation of Mikhail Fradkov, who headed the government since 2004.

At a televised meeting with Mr. Putin in the Kremlin, Mr. Fradkov said he was stepping down to give the President “full freedom of choice, including appointments” ahead of parliamentary elections scheduled in December and presidential elections in March 2008.

Mr. Zubkov (66), is a protegee of Mr. Putin since the early 1990s, when he served as Mr. Putin’s assistant in the St. Petersburg Mayor Office. Later on he held various positions in the tax inspection before his appointment in 2003 as First Deputy Finance Minister and Chairman of the Financial Monitoring Committee of the Ministry, responsible for fighting money laundering.

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