President Boris Yeltsin strengthened his personal grip on the government Tuesday by appointing a man from his own team, reformist Yevgeny Yasin, as Russia's new economics minister.
Immediately after his appointment, Yasin told Reuters by telephone that his priorities would be stabilizing the economy and promoting domestic and foreign investment."I will use all constitutional means to achieve these aims," he said.
He said he supported Russia's tough 1995 budget plan, but there was some room for maneuver and this should be exploited.
"I like the idea of the budget and the main argument behind it - not taking up central bank credits to cover the deficit," he said. "But the figures give us some room for maneuver and we will try to use them to reduce the deficit.
"We need brave decisions in order to cut the deficit."
The budget, yet to go through parliament, envisages a deficit of 7.8 percent of gross domestic product. It aims to bring monthly inflation down to 1 percent by the second half.
Yasin said he hoped to work closely with the Finance Ministry on the budget. He did not expect to play a role in debt negotiations.