Government of Russia (1991–1999)

Government of Russia (1991–1999)
Name	Government of Russia (1991–1999)
Native name	Правительство России (1991–1999)
Country	Russia
Period	1991–1999
Preceding	Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union
Succeeding	Government of the Russian Federation (post-1999)

Contents

Government of Russia (1991–1999) The Government of Russia (1991–1999) refers to the executive institutions that emerged after the collapse of the Soviet Union and governed the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic as the Russian Federation under leaders such as Boris Yeltsin, Yegor Gaidar, Viktor Chernomyrdin, and Sergei Stepashin. This period encompassed radical shifts including the implementation of the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis, the adoption of the Constitution of the Russian Federation (1993), and major reforms like privatization in Russia associated with figures such as Anatoly Chubais and Yegor Gaidar. Internationally it navigated the aftermath of treaties like the Belavezha Accords and organizations including the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.

Historical background and dissolution of the Soviet Government

The dissolution involved leaders and institutions such as Mikhail Gorbachev, the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union, the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union, the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and the August 1991 coup attempt led by figures tied to the State Committee on the State of Emergency. The Belavezha Accords signed by Boris Yeltsin, Leonid Kravchuk, and Stanisław Shushkevich formalized the end of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and precipitated the transfer of authority from the Council of Ministers of the Soviet Union to republican bodies including the emerging Government of the Russian Federation under the presidency of Boris Yeltsin and the first post-Soviet prime ministers such as Yegor Gaidar and Viktor Chernomyrdin. The period also engaged institutions like the Ministry of Defense (Soviet Union), the KGB, and successor agencies including the Federal Security Service.

Following the December 1991 dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Presidency of Russia consolidated power with presidential decrees and appointments to ministries formerly under Soviet ministries. Key actors included Boris Yeltsin, Yegor Gaidar as acting head of government, Viktor Chernomyrdin as later prime minister, and reformers like Anatoly Chubais, Sergei Shakhrai, and Yuri Skokov. The nascent institution negotiated legacies with bodies such as the State Duma (Russian Federation) and the Federation Council (Russia), while state enterprises were restructured through instruments like voucher privatization and laws authored by drafters including Sergei Stepashin and Viktor Gerashchenko influenced by International Monetary Fund programs and interactions with the World Bank.

The 1993 Russian constitutional crisis culminated in the shelling of the House of the Government of the Russian Federation and the adoption of the Constitution of the Russian Federation in December 1993, which redefined the balance among the President of Russia, the Government of Russia, the State Duma (Russian Federation), and the Federation Council (Russia). The constitution created executive prerogatives, clarified the appointment of the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, and established judicial institutions including the Constitutional Court of Russia and the Supreme Court of Russia. Post-1993 reforms affected federal subjects such as Chechnya and republics like Tatarstan, and implicated federal agencies including the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Russia) and the Federal Security Service.

Prime ministers and cabinet heads included acting and confirmed figures: Yegor Gaidar (acting), Viktor Chernomyrdin, Sergei Kiriyenko, Yevgeny Primakov, Sergei Stepashin, and returning figures such as Viktor Chernomyrdin in interim contexts, with star politicians like Anatoly Chubais, Igor Sechin, Yury Luzhkov, Gennady Seleznev, and Boris Nemtsov influencing policy. Cabinets navigated crises including the 1998 Russian financial crisis, hyperinflation and sovereign debt restructuring with institutions such as the Central Bank of Russia and interactions with the International Monetary Fund; ministers included heads of the Ministry of Finance (Russia), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Russia), and the Ministry of Defense (Russia).

Economic policy emphasized shock therapy, price liberalization, and voucher privatization championed by Yegor Gaidar, Anatoly Chubais, Boris Yeltsin, and advisors from organizations like the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Major privatizations involved enterprises formerly under the Ministry of Fuel and Energy and conglomerates such as Gazprom, RAO UES, and Sibur where oligarchs including Boris Berezovsky, Roman Abramovich, Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Vladimir Potanin, and Vagit Alekperov emerged as influential actors. Economic reform laws passed by the State Duma (Russian Federation) and overseen by the Ministry of Finance (Russia) and the Central Bank of Russia led to crises like the 1998 Russian financial crisis and political repercussions involving the Coalition of Free Democrats and opposition groups around figures such as Gennady Zyuganov and Vladimir Zhirinovsky.

Political conflicts included the standoff between Boris Yeltsin and the Supreme Soviet of Russia leading to the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis, clashes over power with regional leaders like Mintimer Shaimiev (Tatarstan) and Akhmad Kadyrov (Chechnya), and outbreaks of violence in the First Chechen War with commanders such as Dzhokhar Dudayev and later Aslan Maskhadov. Relations with federal subjects involved negotiated power-sharing treaties exemplified by accords with Tatarstan and disputes with governors including Yury Luzhkov (Moscow) and Alexander Lebed (Krasnoyarsk/Khabarovsk contexts). Parliamentary politics saw parties like Our Home – Russia, Yabloko, Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, and the Communist Party of the Russian Federation contesting authority, producing crises resolved through constitutional mechanisms and presidential decrees.

Foreign policy transitioned from Cold War dynamics to new alignments: signatories of the Belavezha Accords formed the Commonwealth of Independent States while Russia under Boris Yeltsin engaged with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development dialogues, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and arms control treaties such as the START I Treaty and negotiations around START II. Security institutions including the Ministry of Defense (Russia), the Federal Security Service, and the Foreign Intelligence Service managed internal and external threats, while diplomacy addressed crises in the Balkans, relations with the United States and European Union, and energy geopolitics with neighbors like Ukraine and Kazakhstan over pipelines and gas transit involving Gazprom and agreements shaped by ministers such as Yevgeny Primakov and Andrei Kozyrev.