Putin accepts the proposed changes

Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a reshuffle of the government proposed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, the Kremlin announced on 19 October 2026, according to state news agencies citing the Kremlin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov said the two men discussed social and economic issues and that Mishustin presented a series of changes to the cabinet's composition, which Putin accepted. The changes were officially proposed by Mishustin before being approved.

The transport and finance posts

Finance Minister Anton Siluanov, who has held the post since 2011, is set to become one of several deputy prime ministers while keeping his finance portfolio. This is the most notable change in the reshuffle. Transport Minister Andrei Nikitin is to give up his ministry and become a deputy prime minister. Dmitri Jadrow, until now head of the Federal Air Transport Agency Rosaviatsia, is proposed as Nikitin's successor at the transport ministry. Greek outlets citing Reuters report that Nikitin's new deputy role would include responsibility for developing transport.

Parliament still has to act

None of the changes is final yet, because each requires the approval of the State Duma. Not all names of the new ministers have been publicly announced, and the Kremlin has given no further details. Some commentators described the reshuffle as rather limited in scope.

Economic pressure behind the changes

The reshuffle comes while Russia is searching for new sources of growth. Reports cite a rising budget deficit, higher taxes and relatively high interest rates as the backdrop. Greek reports add that the cost of the war in Ukraine continues to weigh on public finances. Spiegel notes that the reshuffle follows four and a half years of war.

The September election

Deputies of the State Duma were elected in September. Critics, including independent experts and exiled opposition figures, called the vote unfair and undemocratic. They pointed to the exclusion of genuine opposition, including the anti-war party Yabloko, and to the lack of press and opinion freedom. Independent experts accused the election commission of manipulation and called the vote a farce. ORF reports that the only Kremlin-critical opposition party and international election observers were not admitted. United Russia won just under 58 percent of the vote, and the other parliamentary seats went to parties that independent experts describe as a sham opposition. Turnout exceeded 56 percent, the highest in 15 years according to Spiegel. Spiegel adds that all parties in the Duma are considered loyal to the Kremlin and support the war, and that United Russia brought war veterans into parliament.