During a conversation with reporters as part of his working visit to Vietnam, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev commented on the resignation of Minister of Defence Anatoly Serdyukov saying that the latter had been an “efficient” Defence Minister. According to Mr Medvedev, his efficiency was demonstrated through the reform of the Armed Forces. “Not all of the decisions were easy,” he said. “Not all of his decisions were perfect, but this is the way large-scale reforms work.”

Mr Serdyukov also distinguished himself as a competent professional during the August 2008 peace enforcement operation in Georgia, which, in the Prime Minister’s opinion, was “an absolute success from a military point of view”. Its results prompted the former Defence Minister to conclude – and rightly so – that the Armed Forces required further upgrading and modernisation, Mr Medvedev added.

“As for the [Oboronservis] case, we should wait for the investigation to complete and for the court to put a final end [to the proceedings],” he said.

Commenting on Sergei Shoigu’s appointment as Mr Serdyukov’s replacement, the Prime Minister described him as an “experienced leader, who has created an efficient system of the Ministry of Civil Defence, Emergencies and Disaster Relief”. He said that he was hopeful that Mr Shoigu would prove as efficient in his new position, while carrying on with army reform.