By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, nominated by the pro-Kremlin United Russia Party to run for the president in the March 2008 elections, is regarded as one of those closest to President Vladimir Putin.
Even before his presidency, Putin mentioned Medvedev among the few people he trusted most. Medvedev has spent a greater part of his career close to Putin – first in the St. Petersburg mayor’s office, and later in the presidential executive office.
As Putin says in his book “First Person”, he appointed Medvedev deputy chief of staff of his executive office “with room for growth”.
“I had other ideas for Dmitry’s future. I wanted him to head the Federal Commission on Securities as an expert on the securities market. I think he likes working in our team. We will find him an appointment later on,” he says in the book written during the election campaign in 2000.
Medvedev gained experience in securities as Gazprom chairman of the board. The Russian gas giant largely owed to him the liberalisation of its stock and its spectacular capitalisation.
He entered big politics in November 2005, when he became the first deputy prime minister, in charge of national projects. The projects were to consolidate budget allocations for development of agriculture, education, health care and housing construction.
As Deputy Prime Minister, Medvedev did not limit his work to the office. The media loved showing him inspecting cowsheds, cooking an omelette in a newly gasified village, visiting schools newly connected to the Internet, and presenting new ambulances to hospitals. In short, he appears on the air more often than other officials.
Most political experts think Medvedev has every chance of winning even in the first round to carry on Putin’s policy, who remains Russia’s most popular political leader.
Putin had said he would work as premier without any reorganisation of powers between the presidential and prime ministerial posts. However, some experts called into question Putin’s assurances that there would be no redistribution of powers in favour of the prime minister.
“Presumably, during the first two years, Putin will act as a stronger political figure, protecting a younger president from possible mistakes and failures,” said Vitaly Tretyakov, editor-in-chief of the Moskovskiye Novosti a Russian weekly.
After this ‘honeymoon period’, he speculated, Putin and Medvedev would redefine their working relationship.
Political analyst Vyacheslav Nikonov also suggested that if Medvedev was elected president and Putin became prime minister, “an effective system of checks and balances would be created in the government”.
He added in his opinion both Putin and Medvedev would remain key figures in international affairs.
Medvedev also headed the president’s campaign headquarters in the run-up to the 2000 elections. In 2003, he became chief of the presidential administration and retained the post until November 2005, when he was appointed first deputy prime minister and put in charge of an ambitious multi-billion dollar “national project” to improve living standards.