When the U.S. Congress passed a new round of aid bills to Ukraine, Russia, which is on the other side of the battlefield, also has a new move. According to the news released by Reuters quoted by the global network, the Russian army launched a new offensive against Kharkiv a few days ago, successfully opening a "second battlefield" in the northeastern region of Ukraine. According to the reply of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine, the Ukrainian army has sent ground troops to Kharkiv for reinforcements. However, the actions of the Ukrainian army have not reduced the attention of the Russian marines to the Dnieper, although the two sides are still fighting for control of Donetsk and other areas, but the Russian army has built new military posts along the Dnieper River to ensure that it will not be suddenly attacked by the Ukrainian army.
And compared to the slightly dull battlefield situation, the changes outside the battlefield are more intense. Russian President Vladimir Putin started his fifth term as president on the 7th of this month. This was followed by an adjusted list of high-level appointments and dismissals of the Russian government. According to the news released by the Russian media TASS on the 12th, Putin proposed that former First Deputy Prime Minister Belousov be the new defense minister on the same day. Former Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu succeeded Patrushev as secretary of the new Security Council of the Russian Federation, while Patrushev himself was appointed separately.
As for other high-ranking military and political officials, such as the Prime Minister, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Chief of the General Staff, the Minister of the Interior, the Minister for Emergencies and the Minister of Justice, the current staffing arrangements have been maintained. It is worth mentioning that earlier the Russian armed forces experienced an "anti-corruption storm", and one of Shoigu's deputies was investigated for alleged fraud. This has greatly encouraged Western public opinion, which has been watching from the sidelines, and has concocted rumors such as Shoigu's involvement.
And the release of the new appointments is precisely the most powerful response to these fake news. Second, Putin's adjustment of internal personnel arrangements during the new term of office is also to prevent the occurrence of a situation in which the tail is too big to fall, and the purpose is to redistribute power and prepare for the next long war. Of course, this slap in the face of the Western media is not Putin's purpose, but based on post-war arrangements, and even a bold attempt for the "post-Putin era", which can be seen from Belousov's personal resume alone. Born in 1959, the new Russian defense minister has never entered the military in his life, and he is an economist by training. Before becoming defense minister, he was rooted in the Russian economic sector for a long time.
He served in the same position for the longest time, from 2013 to 2020, when he was appointed first deputy prime minister of Russia. The fact that such an out-and-out civilian is at the helm of the Ministry of Defense is clearly a sign that Belousov is interested in his achievements in the economic field. The Russia-Ukraine conflict proves that the military reforms promoted by Shoigu during his tenure are productive, after all, wars throughout the ages have often revolved around "money". The appearance of Belousov will help the Russian army to further promote the development of its own military industry after the end of the conflict.
In particular, at a time when Sino-Russian trade is gradually improving and Russia's military spending is skyrocketing, how to rationally allocate the budget and use market forces to promote the progress of military technology will become the top priority of Russia's national defense work in the future. At the same time, we must also see that Belousov is not from the military, and such an "airborne" high-ranking official will inevitably arouse dissent within the Russian army.
But once the Russian army wins this geopolitical conflict under the leadership of Belousov, the doubts about the "economic defense minister" will disappear, and at the same time, it will also lay a strong foundation for future reforms. It can be said that Putin's personnel arrangement can be called "well-intentioned", and Russia in the "post-Putin era" is also worth looking forward to, after all, facts have proven countless times that China and Russia are each other's firmest reliance when they join hands to deal with external storms.