Russian dictator Vladimir Putin proposed appointing Andrei Belousov as defense minister, and his predecessor Sergei Shoigu — Head of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. Personnel changes must be approved by the Federation Council at a meeting on May 14.
ICTV Facts collected information about the new Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation Andrei Belousov.
Andrey Belousov biography
Andrey Belousov was born on March 17, 1959 in the family of Soviet economist Rem Belousov. In 1981 he graduated from the Faculty of Economics of Moscow State University. Lomonosov.
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In the late 90s, he advised Russian prime ministers Yevgeny Primakov and Sergei Stepashin. He was also a freelance employee of the heads of government of the Russian Federation Mikhail Kasyanov and Mikhail Fradkov.
In Russia's top political circles, Andrei Belousov is called Putin's confidant, who can be entrusted with an audit of military spending. Belousov has no military experience.
Belousov has a doctorate in economics and was president of the board of directors of Russian Railways. For several years he served on the board of directors of Rosneft.
From 2006 to 2012, he was Deputy Minister of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation, as well as Director of the Government Department of Economics and Finance. 2012-2013 — Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation. 2013 — 2020 — Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation.
Sanctions against Andrei Belousov
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For supporting the annexation of Crimea and calling on Russian oligarchs to continue cooperation with sanctioned Russian banks, the United States and the European Union have added Belousov to the sanctions list since 2022.
According to sources, it was Belousov who assured Putin that the Russian economy is able to ensure the annexation of Crimea and withstand possible subsequent sanctions.
The West's reaction to Belousov's appointment
The British Minister of Defense Grant Shapps said that the new head of the Russian Ministry of Defense Andrei Belousov is just another puppet of Putin.
Shapps recalled that under Sergei Shoigu, Russia lost more than 355 thousand soldiers during two years of war. And now the Russian Federation needs a Minister of Defense who would change this destructive legacy and put an end to the invasion. But Russia will instead receive only another Putin puppet.
President of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda believes that personnel changes in the Russian Ministry of Defense are aimed at the internal Russian audience.
— All this is being done for the domestic market, all this is being done to continue this war. Let’s have no illusions that Vladimir Putin is ready for peace negotiations,” Nausėda said.
Edition Politico notes that the appointment of Belousov as Minister of Defense — a sign that Putin wants to switch gears, more than two years after the start of the war in Ukraine.
Former British Military Intelligence Colonel Philip Ingrambelieves that the appointment of Andrei Belousov will allow Putin to leave Shoigu aside and at the same time attract a person who can cope with the consequences of corruption in the Russian Ministry of Defense.
Agency Bloomberg writes that Putin trusts Belousov and considers him an honest and uncorrupt person.
Appointment of Belousov — it is Putin's attempt to tighten control over military affairs amid the protracted war in Ukraine. The appointment of a new person to the Russian Ministry of Defense became relevant after a corruption scandal involving former Deputy Defense Minister Timur Ivanov, one of Shoigu’s key assistants.
Appointment of Belousov — forecast of military analysts
Analysts at the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) believe that with his personnel changes in the Ministry of Defense, Vladimir Putin is preparing for a protracted war in Ukraine and, possibly, for a future confrontation with NATO.
According to ISW analysts, the appointment of Belousov as Russian Defense Minister indicates Putin's concern about the scale of corruption in the Russian armed forces and the inefficiency of the Ministry of Defense as a whole.
Military-political observer of the Information Resistance group Alexander Kovalenko doubts that Belousov’s appointment will be more positive for Ukraine than vice versa. It all depends on two factors.
First, will Belousov be busy reforming and optimizing the Russian Ministry of Defense, in a war of attrition, which would be extremely negative for us. The second factor is whether Belousov will use his knowledge and skills to steal the military budget more delicately and in much larger volumes, which would be simply ideal for us.
How they react inside Russia
The Russian independent publication Verstka, citing a source in the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation, writes that Andrei Belousov will be responsible for the economics of the so-called special military operation, and not for moving arrows on the map.
In the Russian government, Andrei Belousov is considered a tough statist who has his own vision of how the Russian economy should function. And Putin listens to him.
Optimization of military spending will become a priority for the new Minister of Defense of the Russian Federation. However, it is not yet clear whether Belousov will be able to reform the structure of the Ministry of Defense and develop the state defense order. It is also unclear how the Russian military will react to the appointment of a “civilian” Minister of Defense
