Viktor Khristenko
Viktor Khristenko | |
|---|---|
| Born | Viktor Borisovich Khristenko August 28, 1957 Chelyabinsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union |
| Occupation(s) | Statesman, politician |
| Years active | 1998–2016 |
| Known for | Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission (2012–2016); First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia (1999–2000); Minister of Industry and Trade (2004–2012) |
Viktor Borisovich Khristenko (; born 28 August 1957) is a Russian statesman who led the board of the Eurasian Economic Commission from 1 February 2012 until 1 February 2016. He held the position of First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia between 31 May 1999 and 10 January 2000 and served as Minister of Industry from 9 March 2004 through 31 January 2012.
Early life and education
Born in Chelyabinsk on 28 August 1957, Khristenko completed his studies at Chelyabinsk Mechanical Engineering Institute in 1979, specializing in construction management and economics. He obtained a Candidate of Sciences degree in Management from the Moscow Institute of Management in 1983. Khristenko acknowledges the impact of Georgy Shchedrovitsky on his managerial philosophy and authored three chapters in Methodological School of Management, a work inspired by Shchedrovitsky’s Moscow Methodological Circle and its intellectual lineage.
Ministerial roles during the Yeltsin administration
In 1998, Viktor Khristenko was named Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Finance within Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet. Regarded as an obscure reform-minded figure, his appointment hinted at forthcoming economic reforms under the Yeltsin administration. He left office following the cabinet reshuffle led by Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov. From 1999 until early 2000, Khristenko was appointed as First Deputy Prime Minister during Vladimir Putin's First Cabinet.
Positions under Putin’s leadership
In February 2004, Khristenko temporarily assumed the role of acting Prime Minister of Russia after President Vladimir Putin dismissed then-Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov. Characterized as a "widely reformist technocrat" combining loyalty with cautiousness, Khristenko succeeded Kasyanov, who had openly opposed Putin and was viewed as a significant ally to major business interests. At age 46, he was elevated from deputy prime minister to acting prime minister. Putin clarified that Kasyanov’s dismissal was unrelated to government performance but aimed at consolidating leadership ahead of the 2004 presidential election.
Shortly before the election, Putin proposed Mikhail Fradkov as the new prime minister, a nomination ratified by the State Duma. On 9 March 2004, Khristenko took office as Minister of Industry and Trade, a post he retained until 31 January 2012.
Chairmanship of the Eurasian Economic Commission
Khristenko was appointed as the inaugural Chairman of the Eurasian Economic Commission at its establishment in February 2012 and remained in this capacity until stepping down on 1 February 2016.
Personal life
In 2003, Khristenko wed Tatyana Golikova, who served as Minister of Health and Social Development from 2007 to 2012.
Honours and awards
- Order of Merit for the Fatherland;
- 3rd class (3 October 2007) – recognizing notable input into national economic policy
- 4th class (28 August 2006) – honoring efforts to enhance technical and economic collaboration among states
- Grand Officer rank of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2009)
- Presidential Gratitude from the Russian Federation
- Certificate awarded by the Russian Federation Government
- Order of the Holy Prince Daniel of Moscow, first class (Russian Orthodox Church, 2010)
- Order of Friendship, second class (Kazakhstan, 2002)