Russia's new defense minister, Andrei Belousov, started his career as a protégé of former Economy Minister German Gref, a free-market liberal, and served as a deputy economy minister in 2006-2008.
Belousov was Russia's economy minister in 2012-2013, an aide to Putin in 2013-2020, and first deputy prime minister in 2020-2024. He is considered a supporter of boosting military spending and mobilizing the country's economy for the war effort, according to publication Verstka. #AureFreePress
