(Dan Tri) – President Vladimir Putin praised new Defense Minister Andrei Belousov for his experience in the economic field.
Russian President Vladimir Putin (Photo: Tass).
At a meeting in the Kremlin on May 15, President Vladimir Putin said he appointed Andrei Belousov as Russia’s Defense Minister in the context of increasing defense and security spending.
`This is certainly not 13% as was the case in the Soviet Union, but the percentage is still a large number, a large resource and we must use it very carefully and effectively,` Mr. Putin said.
President Putin praised Mr. Belousov for his experience in the field of economics and the development of drones and other unmanned vehicles.
Mr. Belousov used to be an economist and officially became Russia’s Defense Minister on May 14 after being approved by the Russian House of Representatives and President Putin.
Speaking at a hearing before the Russian parliament after being nominated as Minister of Defense, Mr. Belousov said the central task is still to win, ensuring the achievement of the military-political goals of the war.
During the hearing, Mr. Belousov also emphasized that defense spending needs to be optimized so that `every dollar of the budget that the people end up paying brings maximum efficiency.`
President Putin said there will be no changes in the Russian Army General Staff.
President Putin also thanked former Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu for his previous contributions as defense minister.
According to Putin, Russian forces are improving their positions every day along the front in Ukraine and the offensives are taking place according to plan.
`Not only last year when all enemy counterattacks were repelled, but since this year, our army has continuously improved its position in all fields,` Mr. Putin said.
`The more effectively we work on the front lines, the more chances we have of resolving this problem peacefully. This is what we always strive for and I often say it,` Mr. Putin said.
`The work is being carried out according to the plan approved and outlined by the operational command and the General Staff. All assigned tasks have been completed,` President Putin said.
