

December 2011
On September 26 the Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed a decree on the resignation of Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin, who had served in this position since his appointment in 2000. In 2006 Mr. Kudrin received the award "Best Finance Minister of a Developing European Country" by the Emerging Markets newspaper. Euromoney magazine named Kudrin the best finance minister in 2010.
A number of prominent Russian political analysts believe that the resignation of the head of the Ministry of Finance from his position will not make any substantial difference for the policies of the future post-elections cabinet of ministers, that is, including financial policies. In all probability, the country's top financial agency will now be headed by someone from among Mr. Kudrin's current or former deputies.
It is worth noting that any changes within the Ministry of Finance are bound to affect its subordinate agencies - the Federal Tax Service and the Federal Financial Markets Service, - as well.