An Inter Press Service Feature

MOSCOW, Nov 11 (IPS) - Russia's 1995 draft budget which was last month presented to parliament by Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin is likely to be rewritten by a new team of ministers who have this week taken charge of economic management.

Russian first deputy prime minister Anatoli Chubais Friday told reporters at a press conference: "We know what we have to do. The year ahead will not be easy, but the government looks to the future with confidence."

Chubais was promoted by President Boris Yeltsin last week and said he will handle the output of the new ministers for economics and finance, Yevgeny Yasin and Vladimir Panskov, who flanked him.

The trio will guide the second phase of Russia's free market reforms and threaten to ultimately eclipse the role Chernomyrdin plays as head of the government.

However, Chubais' optimism could prove to be misplaced since Chernomyrdin has displayed a strong survival instinct during his two years at the helm.

The youthful -- and sometimes arrogant -- reformer has also been singled out for virulent attacks by Russian opposition lawmakers who mistrust the massive privatisation programme which he has implemented.

Among the major future tasks outlined Friday were to achieve financial stability, promote private investment, improve living standards, curb prices and overcome the recession by 1996-97.

According to veteran economist Yasin: "The main concept of the 1995 budget will be macroeconomic stabilisation as a prerequisite for investment and economic growth. The focus will be on institutional changes for a favourable investment environment."

Replying to questions about the response of multilateral finance organisations like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to the recent cabinet changes, Panskov said that the most important aspect of the government revision was to ensure uniformity in economic policies.

"If there is unanimity among us, it will not change our position vis-a-vis the IMF and other institutions," he stressed.

However, the present shape of the government is described as a coalition cabinet with representatives of all the mainstream political trends finding a place in it.

© Inter Press Service (2014) — All Rights Reserved. Original source: Inter Press Service