Putin proposes Belousov for defense minster, replacing Shoigu

MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday proposed former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov as the new Defense Minister, succeeding Sergei Shoigu, who moves to the role of Russian Security Council Secretary.

The 65-year-old Belousov has held various positions including assistant to the President on economic issues, Minister of Economic Development, Director of the Department of Economics and Finance at the Government Office, and General Director of the Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-term Forecasting.

In a separate decree, Putin appointed Shoigu, the defense minister since 2012, as the Secretary of the Security Council, replacing Nikolai Patrushev. The Kremlin said that it will soon announce the new appointment for Patrushev.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Shoigu will also become Deputy President in the commission on the military-industrial complex.