| Boris Vyacheslavovich Gryzlov | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 29 December 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Gennady Seleznyov |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 27 November 2004 |
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| In office 15 April 2008 – 7 May 2008 |
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| Succeeded by | Vladimir Putin |
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| In office 28 March 2001 – 24 December 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Vladimir Rushaylo |
| Succeeded by | Rashid Nurgaliyev |
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| Born | December 15, 1950 Vladivostok, Soviet Union |
| Nationality | Russian |
| Political party | United Russia |
| Spouse(s) | Ada Viktorovna Gryzlova |
| Children | Dmitry (1979), Evgeniya (1980) |
Boris Vyacheslavovich Gryzlov (also spelled Grizlov; Russian: Борис Вячеславович Грызлов, Russian pronunciation: [bɐˈrʲis ɡrɨzˈlov]) (born December 15, 1950), is a Russian politician and current Speaker of Russia's State Duma (the lower house of parliament). He is one of the leaders of the largest Russian political party, United Russia. Boris Gryzlov is a close ally of Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
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Early career
Gryzlov was born in Vladivostok but was raised in Leningrad (Saint Petersburg). He graduated from the Leningrad Electrical Institute of Communications in 1973 and worked as a radio engineer. From 1977 to 1996 he worked his way up from being an engineer to division director in the Elekronpribor plant.[1] He was not a public figure before 1999. In October 1999 he became head of the St Petersburg regional branch of Sergey Shoygu's Unity party and in December 1999 he was elected to the Russian Duma running on the Unity party ticket. In January 2000 he was elected chairman of the Unity faction in the Duma.
Interior Minister
In March 2001 he was appointed to the post of chief of Russian police and became Russia's Interior Minister. In this position Gryzlov proclaimed that the fight against terrorism and corruption were his priorities. He is responsible for the notorious "werewolves in epaulets" (rus. oborotni v pogonah) investigation into corrupt police officers. The expression "werewolves in epaulets", coined by Gryzlov to indicate corrupt officers, was picked up by the Russian media and Runet, and soon became a popular saying and the inspiration for many jokes. Critics accused Gryzlov of using this investigation to gain more popularity before 2003 parliamentary elections.
Gryzlov supported the Kremlin's controversial policies in Chechnya and won the reputation of being a trusted and loyal supporter of the Russian president.
In August 2001 Boris Gryzlov claimed that up to 100 industrial enterprises in Saint Petersburg, including the Petersburg Fuel Company, a leading gasoline retailing operator in the city, as well as the four main sea ports of Northwestern Russia, Saint Petersburg, Kaliningrad, Arkhangelsk and Murmansk, were controlled by the Tambov Gang.[2] In May 2002 he sent a commission to St. Petersburg to investigate corruption allegations in the city's gasoline market. The investigation was initiated after the Faeton Gasoline Company, the second leading fuel retailing company in the city, had complained to both Gryzlov and the Prosecutor General's Office in April that the Saint Petersburg City Administration had given preferential treatment to the Petersburg Fuel Company.[3] However, this had no evident consequences.
Parliament speaker
Within a year he returned to party politics and in November 2002 became the head of the United Russia, a centrist pro-Putin group what emerged from Unity and several other pro-government movements that joined it. In December 2003 Boris Gryzlov was elected as speaker of the Russian Duma.
As the leader of United Russia, he was often accused by oppositional politics in government bureaucracy and inefficacy and implicit supporting of every Putin's and government action. In 2007 his party made certain concessions to popular demands (e.g. attacking Mikhail Zurabov, who is one of the most unpopular ministers in Russia).
In 2007 Boris Gryzlov characterized his party as a Conservative party.
Memorable quotes
Once in 2005 Gryzlov said: Parliament isn't a place for political discussions.[4][5] He was widely criticized and ridiculed by Russian liberals for this statement.
Following the 2007 Parliamentary elections, Gryzlov responded to criticism of electoral violations saying: They in no way put in doubt the final result. The fact that these violations have been registered shows that we have a transparent ballot.[6]
References
- ^ Biography on Boris Gryzlov's website(in Russian)
- ^ "Newsweek details Putin's alleged organized crime ties...". 7. The Jamestown Foundation. August 27, 2001. http://www.jamestown.org/publications_details.php?volume_id=24&issue_id=2084&article_id=18648. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
- ^ Business - IN BRIEF, St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved on 2008-10-26
- ^ "Gary Kasparov On Putin". PostGlobal. August 2, 2006. http://newsweek.washingtonpost.com/postglobal/needtoknow/2006/08/gary_kasparov_on_putin.html. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
- ^ Zarakhovich, Yuri (March 4, 2007). "Russians Protest Putin's Rule". TIME. http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1595828,00.html. Retrieved 2008-10-26.
- ^ [1][dead link]
External links
Related humour
- Gryzlov-Man comic strip (in Russian)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Gennadiy Seleznyov |
Chairman of the State Duma 2003–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Vladimir Rushailo |
Minister of Internal Affairs 2001 – 2003 |
Succeeded by Rashid Nurgaliyev |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Office created |
Chairman of the Supreme Council of United Russia 2004–present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Office created |
Chairman of the United Russia 2008 |
Succeeded by Vladimir Putin |
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