Vedomosti: “Vladimir Putin: person of the week”
Yevgenia Pismennaya, Kirill Kharatyan
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin seems to be trying his hardest not to overshadow his superior, President Dmitry Medvedev. Putin chose the United Russia party congress - obviously, out of delicacy - to deliver his almost revolutionary announcement about tax reforms and state aid for the country's real economy, including profit tax cuts.
As the congress was a party event it was not open for everyone, providing that Putin would deliver the ideas to the party members who would then carry them to the people using legislative power. Medvedev, meanwhile, has been left to reform the Constitution just to keep the balance.
The situation with Putin and Medvedev's roles is reminiscent of a classic joke about who is more important in the family. "I'm more important," says the husband. "I make decisions on all the crucial issues, and my wife is responsible for minor things. Crucial matters include the US invasion of Iraq, finding a cure for AIDS in South Africa and the world football championship. Minor things include choosing where we are going to go on holiday, the school for our son and new furniture."
The congress was preceded by a cover-up operation, with sources claiming that Putin's Concept 2020 would not be discussed and that the event was not going to be so significant. The announcement on tax reforms was delivered by the Prime Minister in his usual unexpected manner and came as a total surprise. The Government was pleased they had managed to prevent information leaks - by the way, that is why we do not know who is the author of this "tax break".
First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov mentioned that the Finance Ministry had calculated how much revenue the budget would lose due to the reforms, saying that the Government cannot figure out what to do next and believes that the economic laws have been broken but they are still willing to make the best decisions and handle the situation properly.
Perhaps, it was Putin himself who showed his political will in such vague circumstances. Despite the political party involved, evidently the Prime Minister himself is the mastermind of the reforms.
