Russian defence minister appointed Security Council's secretary

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu has been appointed Secretary of the Security Council by President Vladimir Putin's decree.

The announcement was made by Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to RBC.

"[Current Security Council Secretary Nikolai] Patrushev has been relieved of the secretary's post due to a transfer to another job. He continues working, in the coming days, we will inform where," Peskov said.

According to him, Shoigu will simultaneously be Putin's deputy in the commission on the military-industrial complex, "he is deeply immersed in this work," Peskov explained.

Alongside, the former minister will supervise the work of the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation, which was removed from the subordination of the Ministry of Defense on May 11 and transferred to the subordination of the president.

Shoigu had been Russia's defence minister since 2012. A "civilian person" - former First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov - is proposed to take his place, Peskov said. As the presidential spokesman explained, the Defence Ministry should be "absolutely open for innovations, for the introduction of all advanced ideas, for creating conditions for economic competitiveness", and Putin chose Belousov, who successfully headed the Economic Development Ministry (2012-2013), was assistant to the president for economic issues (2013-2020) and deputy prime minister (2020-2024).

"The military component has always been the prerogative of the chief of the General Staff, he will continue his activities, no changes are currently envisaged in this regard," Peskov added.