The Government of Russia exercises executive power in the
Russian Federation
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia
North Asia or Northern Asia, also referred to as Siberia, is the northern region of Asia, which is defined in geographic ...
. The members of the government are the
prime minister, the
deputy prime ministers, and the federal ministers. It has its legal basis in the
Constitution of the Russian Federation and the federal constitutional law "On the Government of the Russian Federation". The
Apparatus of the Government of Russia The Apparatus of the Government of the Russian Federation (russian: Аппарат правительства Российской Федерации) is a governmental body formed to ensure the activities of the Russian government and the prime m ...
is a governmental body which administrates the activities of the government.
According to the 1991 amendment to the
1978 constitution, the
President of Russia was the head of the
executive branch and headed the
Council of Ministers of Russia. According to the current 1993 constitution, the president is not a part of the government of Russia, which exercises executive power. However, the president appoints the prime minister.
History
The large body was preceded by
Government of the Soviet Union. Since the Russian Federation emerged from 1991 to 1992, the government's structure has undergone several major changes. In the initial years, a large number of government bodies, primarily the different ministries, underwent massive reorganization as the old Soviet governing networks were adapted to the new state. Many reshuffles and renamings occurred.
On 28 November 1991, President of the RSFSR
Boris Yeltsin signed
presidential decree No.242 "On the reorganization of the government bodies of the RSFSR". Yeltsin officially declared the end of the Soviet Union and became the President of the Russian Federation. Yeltsin was a reformer and promised Western-styled democracy.
In 1993, the new Russian Constitution was adopted. The new Constitution gained legitimacy through its bicameral legislature, an independent judiciary, the position of the president and the prime minister, and democratic features. These democratic features included competitive multi-party elections, separation of powers, federalism, and protection of civil liberties.
In 1999, Yeltsin appointed
Vladimir Putin as the Prime Minister. Later in that year, Yeltsin resigned from the presidency and Putin took over as the Acting President. In a highly biased 2000 election, Putin won the presidential election.
The most recent change took place on 21 January 2020, when President
Vladimir Putin signed a presidential decree on forming
Mikhail Mishustin's Cabinet.
Responsibilities and power
The Government is the subject of the 6th chapter of the
Constitution of the Russian Federation. According to the constitution, the government of the Russian Federation must:
#Draft and submit the
federal budget to the
State Duma
The State Duma (russian: Госуда́рственная ду́ма, r=Gosudárstvennaja dúma), commonly abbreviated in Russian as Gosduma ( rus, Госду́ма), is the lower house of the Federal Assembly of Russia, while the upper house ...
; ensure the implementation of the budget and report on its implementation to the State Duma;
#Ensure the implementation of a uniform financial, credit and
monetary policy in the Russian Federation ;
#Ensure the implementation of a uniform state policy in the areas of
culture
Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these grou ...
, science,
education
Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. ...
,
health protection
Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...
,
social security and
ecology;
#Manage federal property;
#Adopt measures to ensure the country's defense,
state security, and the implementation of the
foreign policy of the Russian Federation;
#Implement measures to ensure the
rule of law
The rule of law is the political philosophy that all citizens and institutions within a country, state, or community are accountable to the same laws, including lawmakers and leaders. The rule of law is defined in the ''Encyclopedia Britannica ...
,
human rights
Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
and freedoms, the protection of property and
public order
In criminology, public-order crime is defined by Siegel (2004) as "crime which involves acts that interfere with the operations of society and the ability of people to function efficiently", i.e., it is behaviour that has been labelled criminal ...
, and
crime control;
#Exercise any other powers vested in it by the Constitution of the Russian Federation, federal laws and
presidential decrees.
The Constitution of the Russian Federation: Chapter 6
The government issues its acts in the way of decisions (Постановления) and orders (Распоряжения). These must not contradict the constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed.
When these princip ...
, federal constitutional laws, federal laws, and Presidential decrees, and are signed by the Prime Minister.
The Government, also assists the Prime Minister, in faithfully carrying out the country's domestic and foreign policy as determined by the President, in general.
Current Cabinet
Lists of ministers
See also
* Security Council of Russia
*List of heads of government of Russia
Approximately 38 people have been head of the Russian government since its establishment in 1905.
The Council of Ministers of the Russian Empire, created in November 1905, was preceded by a number of cabinet-like institutions. Oldest of them ...
* Government of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
* Government of the Soviet Union
* Russian Foreign Services
* Russia under Vladimir Putin
References
External links
Official website of the Government of Russia
{{Use mdy dates, date=May 2011
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...
History of Russia (1991–present)
European governments
Federal executive bodies of Russia