Long-time Putin confidant resigns – he had already considered doing so after the invasion of Ukraine

Dmitry Kozak, a long-time confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has resigned from his post as deputy head of the presidential administration. According to RBC sources, he plans to meet with his staff in the coming days and is considering offers to move into the private sector.

Forbes reported, citing a source, that Kosak had already been ready to leave the presidential administration in 2022, after the start of Russia's “special military operation” in Ukraine.

The magazine also recalled an article in the New York Times from August of this year, which stated that he was allegedly the only one to speak out against it at the expanded meeting of the Russian Security Council in February 2022.

Kosak had been one of the influential figures in Putin's circle since the 1990s, when he worked in the legal department of the Leningrad City Council and later in the office of the mayor of St. Petersburg. After a brief career in law, he returned to politics, where he held several important positions.

Since 1999, he had been part of Putin's government structure, gradually serving as first deputy head of the government office, member of the presidential administration, minister of regional development, and deputy prime minister.

(max)