President Vladimir Putin has dismissed Transportation Minister Roman Starovoit just over a year after appointing him, according to a decree published Monday on the Kremlins official website.The decree, which took immediate effect, did not specify the reason for Starovoits removal.Putin replaced him withDeputy Transportation Minister Andrei Nikitin, who will now serve as acting transportation minister.
According to anonymous sources cited by the business newspaper Vedomosti, the decision to replace Starovoit was made several months ago.Later on Monday, the Kremlin published a video of the president meeting with Nikitin, telling the new appointee: I hope you will apply all your energy, knowledge, skills and organizational abilities to tackle the critical challenges facing this sector.Nikitin resigned as governor of the northwestern Novgorod region in February to assume the deputy role.Putin had tapped Starovoit to lead the Transportation Ministry in May 2024 after he was elected as president for another six-year term.
Starovoit previously served as governor of the southwestern Kursk region near the Ukrainian border from 2018 to 2024.His tenure as governor drew renewed scrutiny following Ukraines surprise incursion into the Kursk region in August 2024.
Since then, law enforcement authorities have made several high-profile arrests, including that of his successor Alexi Smirnov, over alleged corruption in the construction of border fortifications.While Starovoit has not been directly implicated in the ongoing police investigations, Russian media reported that the breached border defenses, built during his time as governor, cost nearly 15 billion rubles (around $191 million) and took nearly three years to construct.Political analyst Yevgeny Minchenko called Starovoits dismissal predictable, adding thatthe Kursk region situation has caught up with him.
Michenko also describedNikitin as aconservative candidate for his replacement.