Former USSR Prime Minister Nikolai Ryzhkov resigned from the Federation Council – Kommersant

The term of office of the senator from the Belgorod region Nikolai Ryzhkov was terminated early. The former Prime Minister of the USSR worked as a member of the Federation Council for 20 years.

The document on the early termination of the senator’s powers was signed by Federation Council Speaker Valentina Matvienko on September 25. Along with him, a number of other senators left the upper house of parliament. As follows from the message on website Federation Council, the basis for all of them was clauses “a” and “b” of Article 4 of the law “On the status of a senator and the status of a State Duma deputy,” that is, by a written statement from the senators themselves or in connection with their election to another position. The reasons for Mr. Ryzhkov’s departure were not reported.

Nikolai Ryzhkov is 94 years old. He worked in the Federation Council since 2003 and was the oldest senator. In the 1980s, he served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR, was a member of the Politburo of the CPSU Central Committee, and supported Mikhail Gorbachev’s course towards creating “market socialism” while maintaining planned economic management. He headed the headquarters for liquidation of the consequences of the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, coordinated the work to liquidate the consequences of the earthquake in the city of Spitak in Armenia. He is the last living head of government of the USSR.

Leonid Uvarchev