The First Deputy Head of the Yabloko faction of the State Duma Sergei Ivanenko thinks that the present Cabinet appointments made by President Vladimir Putin should be treated with �cautious optimism�.

In an interview with journalists on Wednesday March 28, 2001, Ivanenko said that the new nominee for Minister for Nuclear Energy was a �very good choice�, noting that the new Minister is �a well-known person and academician whose opinion is trusted not only by the academic community.�

Regarding the Defence Ministry, the appointment of Lyubov Kudyelina as one of deputy ministers is �also positive�, added Ivanenko. He expressed his hope that with the appointment of Kudyelina to the Defence Ministry the �military budget will also become more transparent�.

�Speaking about reshuffles in general, we can note that most of them are political in nature,� stressed Ivanenko.

With this in mind, Ivanenko said when assessing the appointment as Minister of the Interior of the leader of the Unity faction of the Duma Boris Gryzlov, that �we shall be very glad if the new minister is able to resolve the Chechen problem�. Ivanenko stressed that Boris Gryzlov has received a �very tough job� and �one of the most difficult ministries�.

Judging by the appointments made by the President today, Ivanenko added that he is �forming a new government and his own team, changing the people inherited from Boris Yeltsin.�

Sergei Ivanenko also drew the attention of the journalists to the fact that the team is formed from people who are �personally loyal� to the President and �will implement exclusively President Putin�s policy�.

Sergei Ivanenko forecast that after the reshuffles in the interior and defence ministries, one should expect new appointment in the economic bloc of the government, which will be �most interesting�.

Based on Interfax reports.

See also:

Sergei V. Ivanenko

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