President Putin said he had signed the decree “On the Operation of the Government after the Inauguration of the New President”.
He instructed the Government to continue working until the formation of the new Cabinet Of Ministers and appointed Mikhail Kasyanov Acting Prime Minister.
The President said that in accordance with the Constitution, the Government had to step down upon the inauguration of the new President. He appealed to the ministers to continue working, saying that such a large country as Russia cannot be left without a government for a moment.
He also thanked the ministers for working with him.
Candidates for the post of Prime Minister would be presented to the lower house soon, Mr Putin said, and expressed the hope that the Government’s core would be preserved and the majority of ministers would keep their posts.