THE NEW GOVERNMENT

Prime Minister
Sergei Vladimirovich KIRIENKO, 35
Sergei Kirienko was born in Sukhumi (Abkhazia, Georgia) on 26 July
1962. His education focused on water transportation engineering, finance,
and banking. He served as the first secretary of the Gorky (now Nizhnii
Novgorod) Komsomol and then was a member of the Gorky Oblast Soviet.
In January 1994, he founded the Guarantee Bank in Nizhnii Novgorod
Oblast and worked as its president. According to his colleagues there, he
was a "young reformer, energetic, honest, ambitious (in the best sense of
the word), and capable of finding a common language with just about
anyone." The bank is still thriving, with assets of 178 billion old rubles
at the end of 1997. (Birzha [Nizhnii Novgorod], 30 April)
In November 1996, Nizhnii Novgorod Governor Boris Nemtsov recommended
his appointment as president of the Norsi-oil company. At the end of 1994,
the Norsi oil refinery had been declared bankrupt. Construction on the
plant had begun in 1957, and during its heyday it had daily refined 60,000
tons of oil into gasoline, kerosene, diesel fuel, mineral oil, paraffin,
and other products. But rumors of the plant's death were greatly
exaggerated. Deloitte and Touche and Moscow's Interaudit examined the
refinery's books and declared that it could be profitable.
The Norsi refinery is now Russia's second largest oil refiner. Within
a half year of taking over, Kirienko devised a way for the plant to pay its
debts and restored the confidence of the main raw material suppliers,
Tatneft and LUKoil, gaining a steady supply of oil.
When Nemtsov was appointed first deputy prime minister and fuel and
energy minister in March 1997, Kirienko joined him in the capital as first
deputy minister of fuel and energy, assuming his post on 13 May 1997. When
Yeltsin forced Nemtsov to resign as fuel and energy minister in November,
Kirienko moved into the post. On 23 March, Yeltsin appointed him acting
prime minister.

Deputy Prime Minister (replaces Kirienko when he is absent, oversees
natural monopolies, energy policy)
Boris Yefimovich NEMTSOV, 38
Born in 1959 in Sochi, Nemtsov studied radio physics in Gorky (Nizhnii
Novgorod) and in his 20s earned a reputation as a brilliant engineer. In
1990, he was elected to the Russian parliament and, after the abortive 1991
coup, Yeltsin initially appointed him as his representative in Nizhnii
Novgorod and later governor of the region. In 1995, he won a gubernatorial
election, but in 1997 Yeltsin transferred him to the federal government,
making him first deputy prime minister and, temporarily, minister of fuel
and energy.

Deputy Prime Minister (responsible for finance and economy,
center-periphery relations)
Viktor Borisovich KHRISTENKO, 41
Born in 1957 in Chelyabinsk, Khristenko is a trained economist who
made a successful teaching career at the Chelyabinsk Polytechnic Institute.
In 1990, he became involved in Chelyabinsk city politics and later handled
economic problems in the Chelyabinsk Oblast government. In 1997, he
briefly served as the president's representative in the region and later
that year become deputy finance minister.

Deputy Prime Minister (oversees social and labor issues)
Oleg Nikolaevich SYSUEV, 45
Born in 1953 in Kuybyshev (Samara), Sysuev is a trained aircraft pilot
who made a career in the Communist Party and Soviet power structures before
1991. Yeltsin appointed him mayor of Samara in December 1991. On 5 June
1994, 73% percent of the voters gave him a popular mandate in the city. He
won a second term in September 1996, holding on to his 73 percent majority.
In March 1997, Yeltsin appointed him deputy prime minister and in April of
that year added responsibilities as minister of labor and social
development.

Minister of State Property
Farit Rafikovich GAZIZULLIN, 52
Born in 1946 in Selenodolsk, Tatarstan, Gazizullin was trained in
water transport engineering and sociology. He worked his way up the
Communist Party and Soviet administrative ladder and by 1995 held several
important positions in Tatarstan's government. In 1996, he became first
deputy head of the State Property Committee, which eventually became a
ministry that he was appointed to head in 1997.

Interior Minister
Sergei Vadimovich STEPASHIN, 46
Born in 1952 in Port-Arthur, Stepashin was educated in ideological
training at the Political School of the Soviet Ministry of the Interior.
After serving in the interior forces and completing graduate work in
political training, he taught at his alma mater. In 1991, he began a
career in the Russian security apparatus, eventually becoming director of
the Federal Security Service in 1994. Stepashin was sacked in 1995 and
partially blamed for Russia's losses in the Chechen war and the
hostage-taking incident at Budennovsk. However, he returned to power as
justice minister in July 1997. He moved to the Interior Ministry in April
1998. He is a loyal Yeltsinist. (Segodnya, 31 March) The ministry controls
220,000 troops.

Labor and Social Development Minister
Oksana Genrikhovna DMITRIEVA, 40
Born in 1958 in Leningrad, Dmitrieva was trained in finance and
economics, after which she pursued a research career at her alma mater, the
Leningrad Institute of Finance and Economics. In 1993, she was elected to
the State Duma, joining the Yabloko faction. She was re-elected in 1995.

Economics Minister
Yakov Moiseyevich URINSON, 54
Born in 1944, Urinson graduated from the Plekhanov Economics Institute
and then pursued an academic career at several research institutes. In
1993, he became acting first deputy economics minister and in 1997 Yeltsin
appointed him deputy prime minister and economics minister.

Minister of Agriculture and Foodstuffs
Viktor Aleksandrovich SEMENOV, 40
Born in 1958 in Moscow Oblast, Semenov was trained in agricultural
economics and became a state farm director by 1988. Beginning in 1985, he
became involved in Communist Party and Soviet work. In 1995, he won
election to the Moscow Oblast Duma. When his term was up in 1997, he became
first deputy head of the Russian Agricultural Industrial Union.

Minister of Atomic Energy
Yevgenii Olegovich ADAMOV, 59
Born in 1939, Adamov graduated from the Moscow Aviation Institute and
later earned a doctorate in technical sciences. He spent most of his
career at the Kurchatov Atomic Energy Institute and at the Institute of
Energy Technologies in Moscow. Adamov was first appointed minister of
atomic energy in March 1998. He is a distinguished scholar and a member of
the Russian Academy of Engineering Sciences and the New York Academy of
Sciences.

Minister for Emergency Situations
Sergei Kuzhugetovich SHOIGU, 43
Born in 1955 in what is now Tuva Republic, Shoigu studied construction
engineering and had a successful career in the construction industry in
Krasnoyarsk Krai. Eventually he became involved in Party and Komsomol
work, but in 1990 he joined a state committee on construction and
architecture. In 1991, he was appointed to head the State Committee on
Emergency Situations, and in 1994 he became minister for emergency
situations and civil defense.

Minister for Regional and Nationalities Policy
Yevgenii Saulovich SAPIRO, 64
Born in 1934 in Mariupol, Ukraine, Sapiro studied metallurgical
engineering at the Urals Polytechnic Institute, Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg),
and then earned a doctorate in economics from Perm University, where he
later taught. In addition to academic work, Sapiro had a brief Party and
Soviet career in Perm until the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 1992, he
became deputy governor of Perm Oblast. After he won a seat in the oblast
Legislative Assembly in 1994, the body elected him its speaker,
simultaneously making him a member of the Federation Council, where he
chaired the Economic Policy Committee. Although he was reelected to the
Perm legislature in December 1997, he failed to regain the chairmanship.
Following his defeat, he set up the Sapiro Fund, which engaged in legal
consulting work. Many of his graduate students have been successful in
business.

Minister of Healthcare
Oleg Vsevolodovich RUTKOVSKII, 50
Until now, Rutkovskii has served as the chief surgeon at Moscow's First
City Hospital, according to RFE/RL Newsline (11 May).

Minister of Foreign Affairs
Yevgenii Maksimovich PRIMAKOV, 69
Born in 1929 in Kiev, Primakov majored in Oriental studies and
economics at the university. He had a long career in the media and the
Soviet State Committee on TV and Radio. In 1977, he became director of the
Oriental Studies Institute and in 1985 director of the Institute of the
World Economy and International Relations. In the late 1980s, he joined
the Party's Central Committee and subsequently won election to the Soviet
parliament. During the fall of 1991, he served in various capacities in the
KGB. From December 1991 to January 1996, he served as director of the
Foreign Intelligence Service, which took over some of the KGB's functions.
He replaced Andrei Kozyrev as foreign minister in January 1996.

Minister of Culture
Natalia Leonidovna DEMENTIEVA, 51
Born in 1945 in Kuibyshev (Samara), Dementieva is a trained historian
and archaeologist with a degree from Leningrad State University. After a
brief career in the field of archaeology, she worked as a museum curator
and fought to preserve historical monuments in Leningrad and Leningrad
Oblast. In 1987, she became director of the State Museum of St. Petersburg
History and in 1997 she was appointed Minister of Culture.

Minister of Science and Technology
Vladimir Borisovich BULGAK, 57
Born in 1941 in Moscow, Bulgak received a degree in electric
communications and later attended the Institute of Economic Administration.
Following some work in the Komsomol, Bulgak focused on building
communications infrastructure in the city of Moscow. In 1983, he joined
the Soviet Ministry of Communications, where he remained until his
appointment as Russian minister of communications in 1991, a post he held
until 1997, when he became deputy prime minister. Bulgak was appointed
minister of science and technology in April 1998.

Defense Minister
Igor Dmitrievich SERGEEV, 60
Born in 1938, Sergeev initially served in the navy and attended two
military command academies. During most of his career, Sergeev remained in
the Strategic Rocket Forces in various command positions. In 1992, he
became chief commander of the Strategic Rocket Forces and, in 1997, defense
minister. He is a highly decorated officer and the first individual
elevated to the rank of marshal in post-Soviet Russia. Yeltsin likes
Sergeev because, in contrast to his predecessors, he does not complain
about a lack of financial resources and claims that military reform is on
track, according to military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer. He also has no
apparent political ambitions. Yeltsin, Felgenhauer argues, has no real
interest in addressing the military's problems.

Minister of General and Professional Education
Aleksandr Nikolaevich TIKHONOV, 51
Born in 1947 in Yalta, Tikhonov studied electronics and earned his
doctorate before becoming a professor and a member of the Russian Academy
of Natural Sciences and several other academies. He had a highly
successful academic career at his alma mater, the Moscow Institute of
Electronics, ultimately becoming its rector in 1990. In 1991, he began his
career in the Russian government, serving on various bodies dealing with
higher and professional education, and in March 1998, he was appointed
minister of general and professional education.

Minister for Natural Resources
Viktor Yuriievich NEKRUTENKO, 47
Born in 1951 in Moscow, Nekrutenko studied geodesic engineering and
land surveying, and later earned a graduate degree in public management.
After a long career in land surveying, he joined the State Property
Committee in 1992, and worked on the Russian government staff handling
property and entrepreneurship issues until his April 1998 appointment.

Communications Minister
Nikolay Emeliyanovich AKSENENKO, 49
Born in 1949 in Novosibirsk Oblast, Aksenenko studied railway
transport engineering and did graduate work at the Economics Academy. He
has risen to his current post from an entry-level position at the East
Siberian Railroads.

Minister of Fuel and Energy
Sergei Vladimirovich GENERALOV, 34
Born in 1963 in Simferopol, Generalov was educated in radio technology
at the Moscow Energy Institute and in administration at the Ordzhonikidze
School of Management. In the early 1990s, he worked in the private sector,
including several commercial banks. From 1993-1997, he worked in Yukos oil
company, becoming its vice president in 1994. In 1997, he became deputy
chairman of the board of MENATEP bank.
He spoke with foreign investors at Yukos and understands how to deal
with them, according to the Moscow Times. (6 May) The paper notes that
Yeltsin first offered the job to LUKoil vice president and CFO Leonid
Fedun, but Fedun turned it down, suggesting that the post is not thought to
further the interests of any one company.
Generalov's former employer is now part of the Yuksi oil company,
which is co-controlled by Chubais-enemy Boris Berezovsky. In this light,
Generalov is seen as a counter-weight to Chubais on energy issues.

Transportation Minister
Sergei Ottovich FRANK, 38
Born in 1960 in Novosibirsk, Frank studied marine engineering in the
Far East and made a career in the Far Eastern Shipping Company. In 1995,
he was appointed to handle marine transport in the Russian Ministry of
Transportation, eventually becoming deputy minister and, in March 1998,
minister.

Finance Minister
Mikhail Mikhailovich ZADORNOV, 35
Born in 1963 in Moscow, Zadornov was trained in economics and did
graduate work on direct capital investment in industrial enterprises.
After working briefly at several economic research institutes, Zadornov won
election to the State Duma on the Yabloko ticket from a district in
Kamchatka. In November 1997 he was appointed finance minister, leaving both
the parliament and the party, which is strongly critical of Yeltsin's
policies.

Justice Minister
Pavel Vladimirovich KRASHENINNIKOV, 34
Born in 1964 in Sverdlovsk Oblast, Krasheninnikov studied law at the
Sverdlovsk Legal Institute, where he subsequently taught civil law. After
working as an expert for the Supreme Soviet, he moved on to the Ministry of
Justice and briefly served on the State Anti-Trust Committee. In August
1997, he became deputy minister of justice and, in April 1998, minister.

Minister on Land Policy, Construction and the Housing and Utilities Sector
(The ministry absorbs functions of the abolished State Land Committee,
State Committee on Housing and Construction Policy, and the Federal Service
on Surveying and Cartography.)
Ilya Arturovich YUZHANOV, 38
Born in 1960 in Leningrad (St. Petersburg), Yuzhanov has advanced
training in economics. He taught economics in various institutions around
Leningrad before joining the city government's economic reforms committee,
which he eventually headed. In April 1994, he became the head of the
municipal land resources committee, and in May 1997 moved on to chair a
similar committee on the federal level.

Industry and Trade Minister (The ministry assumes some functions of the
abolished Foreign Trade and CIS Ministries, along with some
responsibilities of the Ministry of the Economy.)
Georgii Valerievich GABUNIYA (Acting Minister), 46
Born in 1952 in Moscow, Gabuniya graduated from the Moscow State
Institute of International Relations before joining a research institute at
the USSR Ministry of Foreign Trade. Later he worked at the UN Conference
on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva and handled foreign economic
relations at the Soviet Ministry of Foreign Affairs. After 1991, he held
several high-level positions at the Russian Ministry of Foreign Economic
Relations, including that of first deputy minister. According to RFE/RL
Newsline (11 May), he has been Russia's top negotiator on trade issues,
such as the country's bid for membership in the World Trade Organization.