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Beloussov: An economist should now lead Russia’s war
Andrei Beloussov is set to become Russia’s new defense minister. photo
© Sakchai Lalit/AP/dpa
The appointment of economist Beloussov as Russian Defense Minister surprised observers. Kremlin boss Putin is counting on getting the arms industry up to speed.
The previous deputy head of government and economic expert As the future defense minister, Andrei Beloussov is expected to set new accents in Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. The 65-year-old does not mean a departure from Moscow’s war course, but rather a shift in focus from the pure military to the arms industry. Beloussov comes from a family of scientists in Moscow; his mother was a chemist and his father was a well-known economist in the Soviet Union’s planned economy.
He also spent years writing economic forecasts at an institute before being appointed to the government in 2006. First, Beloussov became deputy minister of economics and then head of the finance and economic department in the government apparatus. During this time he earned the trust of the then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, whose close follower he has been considered ever since. After a brief interlude as economics minister, Beloussov quickly followed Putin to the Kremlin as an advisor in 2013.
Ideological similarities
The reason for this closeness is probably the ideological similarities between the two. The top official, who is married for the second time, is known for giving the state a superior role in the economy and social life. He has more than once demanded special levies from the country’s large corporations in order to cover the growing needs of the Russian budget. Beloussov speaks of traditional values, Russian national interests and external enemies that supposedly surround the country and try to curtail its sovereignty.
Annexation of Crimea in 2014
In 2014, according to information from the independent portal The Bell, he was the only one from the economic and financial bloc among Russia’s top officials to support the annexation of Crimea. At the time, many others feared the financial consequences of Western sanctions. As deputy head of government, Beloussov has had a major influence on the economic sector since 2020, which he continued to expand through large government spending. Since the beginning of the war, he has been on the EU and US sanctions lists as a Putin confidant.
Putin now expects that, as an expert, he will be able to manage the large state expenditures that flow into the defense sector better than his predecessor Shoigu. In any case, from his previous work, he knows exactly where he can find the necessary funds in the government to plug holes if necessary.