"The reduction in the number of ministries indicates the administrative reform that the head of state declared ... Now, contact with the ministers will become closer. Earlier, the cabinet acted like a lightning rod for unpopular reforms," noted the political scientist.
Mr. Simonov called attention to the fact that there are no representatives of the old, Yeltsin elite in the new government. In his opinion, the new composition of the governments shows the president's determination to carry out liberal reforms in the country.
"People, who were Putin's old brothers-in-arms have joined the government again and representatives of old Yeltsin elite are no longer there," he emphasized. "The liberal wing is strongly represented in the new cabinet. This trio: Zhukov, Kudrin and Gref, will focus on economic issues."
Furthermore, he noted that representatives of the regional elite like Yury Trutnev, the governor of Perm and the former Nature Minister, would hold important posts in the government.
