Sergey Kiriyenko

Sergey Vladilenovich Kiriyenko (Russian: Серге́й Владиле́нович Кирие́нко; born 26 July 1962) is a Russian politician. He serves as the First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia since 5 October 2016.[1] Previously he served as the 30th Prime Minister of Russia from 23 March to 23 August 1998 under President Boris Yeltsin. Between 2005 and 2016 he was the head of Rosatom, the state nuclear energy corporation.

Sergey Kiriyenko Серге́й Кирие́нко
First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Administration of Russia
Incumbent
Assumed office 5 October 2016
President	Vladimir Putin
Preceded by	Vyacheslav Volodin
Prime Minister of Russia
In office 23 March 1998 – 23 August 1998
President	Boris Yeltsin
Preceded by	Viktor Chernomyrdin
Succeeded by	Viktor Chernomyrdin (Acting) Yevgeny Primakov
First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia
In office 23 March 1998 – 24 April 1998
Prime Minister	Himself(acting)
Preceded by	Boris Nemtsov
Succeeded by	Yuri Maslyukov
Personal details
Born	Sergey Vladilenovich Israitel (1962-07-26) 26 July 1962 Sukhumi, Abkhaz ASSR, Georgian SSR
Political party	Communist Party of the Soviet Union (1980s–1991) Independent (1991–1998 and since 2008) Union of Right Forces (1998–2008)
Spouse(s)	Maria V. Kiriyenko
Children	Vladimir Lyubov Nadezhda

This name uses Eastern Slavic naming customs; the patronymic is Vladilenovich and the family name is Kiriyenko.

Kiriyenko was the youngest Prime Minister of Russia, taking the post at the age of 35 years.

Early life

Sergei Kiriyenko's grandfather, Yakov Israitel, made his name as a devoted communist and member of the Cheka,[2] and Vladimir Lenin awarded him with an inscribed pistol for his good service to the Communist Party of the Soviet Union.

Sergei Kiriyenko, son of a Jewish father,[3] was born in Sukhumi, the capital of the Abkhaz ASSR, and grew up in Sochi, in southern Russia. He adopted the Ukrainian surname of his mother.[3] After graduation from high school, Kiriyenko enrolled in the shipbuilding faculty at the Nizhny Novgorod (Gorky) Water Transport Engineers Institute, where his divorced father taught.

Prime Minister

See also: Sergey Kiriyenko's Cabinet

Kiriyenko was appointed Prime Minister after the dismissal of Viktor Chernomyrdin's Second Cabinet. The State Duma, dominated by the Communist Party of the Russian Federation, twice refused to confirm his appointment but president Boris Yeltsin nominated him a third time and Kiriyenko was confirmed.

Along with Deputy Prime Minister Boris Nemtsov and Anatoly Chubais, Kirienko became known as one of "young reformists". They tried to improve the Russia's economy using International Monetary Fund credits, and it elevated the national debt to the level of $22.6 billion.

Kirienko's cabinet defaulted the GKO-OFZ government bond coupons which led to devaluation of the Russian ruble and 1998 Russian financial crisis. Responsible for the crisis, the prime minister resigned on 23 August.

Libel lawsuit

In 2004 Novaya Gazeta printed seven articles by columnist Georgy Rozhnov, which accused Kiriyenko of embezzling US$4.8 billion of International Monetary Fund funds in 1998 when he was Prime Minister of Russia.[4] The newspaper based the accusations on a letter allegedly written to Colin Powell and signed by US Congressmen Philip Crane, Mike Pence, Charlie Norwood, Dan Burton and Henry Bonilla and posted on the website of the American Defense Council.[5] The newspaper went on to claim that Kiriyenko had used some of the embezzled funds to purchase real estate in the United States. The Moscow newspaper, The eXile, announced it had sent the letter as a prank, but later claimed that this had been a joke.[5][6] In response, Kiriyenko sued Novaya Gazeta and Rozhnov for libel,[6] and in passing judgement in favour of Kiriyenko the court ordered Novaya Gazeta to retract all publications relating to the accusations, and noted "Novaya gazeta’s content on the missing IMF funds include a great deal of unproven information" and also went on to say that the newspaper "is obliged to publish only officially proven information linking Mr Kiriyenko with embezzlement."[4]

Union of Right Forces

Sergey Kiriyenko (left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin

Together with Boris Nemtsov and Irina Hakamada, Kirienko formed the Union of Right Forces. Kiriyenko led the party in the 1999 legislative election. Party finished fourth on elections, receiving 29 seats. Sergey Kiriyenko headed the parliamentary group of the party.

Rosatom

Kiriyenko, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, 2010

Kiriyenko was appointed to head Rosatom, the Federal Atomic Energy Agency, on November 30, 2005.[7] He is also chairman of the board of directors of the vertically integrated Atomenergoprom nuclear company.[8]

He said on 18 September 2006 while in Vienna, that the reactor in the Bushehr nuclear plant in Iran should be operational by September 2007 and the plant itself will be active in November 2007. He advocated President Vladimir Putin's idea of creating an international system of uranium enrichment centers. A uranium enrichment center could be operational in Russia in 2007.[9] Responding to a reporter's question, Kiriyenko said that the Bushehr power plant would not affect nuclear non-proliferation and that there was nothing preventing Iran-Russia energy cooperation. The Government of Russia planned to deliver nuclear fuel to the plant in March 2007.[10] After a delay of some three years, Kiriyenko said 21 August 2010's arrival of nuclear fuel at Iran's Bushehr I marks "an event of crucial importance" that proves that "Russia always fulfills its international obligations." Spent nuclear fuel from the plant will be sent back to Russia.[11]

For his work in Rosatom Kirienko was awarded by a confidential decree a Hero of Russia honorary title.[12]

See also

• Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet

References

1. Kirienko leaves Rosatom to join Presidential AdministrationWorld Nuclear News. 6 October 2016
2. Victor Yasmann Russia: Sergei Kiriyenko -- Russia's 'Kinder Surprise' Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 15 February 2006.
3. "Oil and banking fuel the rise of Russian risk-taker". The Irish Times. 18 April 1998.
4. "III. Lawsuits against Journalists". Center for Journalism in Extreme Situations. 11–17 October 2004. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
5. Ames, Mark (22 July 2004). "Double Punk'd! Meta-Prank Goes Mega-Bad". The eXile. Archived from the original on 26 February 2008. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
6. "Новая газета" опровергла обвинения в адрес Кириенко. Lenta.ru (in Russian). 20 December 2004. Archived from the original on 11 March 2007. Retrieved 31 January 2009.
7. Does the abrupt sacking of Russian nuclear energy minister signal a turnaround in Moscow`s policy on Iran’s nuclear program? DEBKA
8. "AtomEnergoProm established, board named". 10 July 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 19 September 2007.
9. "Russia says Iranian plant will come on line in 2007". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. 19 September 2006. Archived from the original on 3 October 2006. Retrieved 2 October 2006.
10. "Kiriyenko: Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant fully accords int'l laws". Islamic Republic News Agency. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 2 October 2006.
11. "Iran's first nuclear plant begins fueling". CNN. 21 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
12. "Ядерные достижения приняли героическую форму" (116). Kommersant. 5 July 2018.

External links

• Federal agency on atomic energy of Russia

Political offices
Preceded by Viktor Chernomyrdin	Prime Minister of Russia 1998	Succeeded by Viktor Chernomyrdin Acting
Diplomatic posts
Preceded by Position created	Presidential Envoy to the Volga Federal District 18 May 2000 – 14 November 2005	Succeeded by Aleksandr Konovalov