The Russian State Duma will hold an extraordinary session on July 15 to discuss dozens of issues amid speculation about policy shifts and a reshuffle in President Vladimir Putin’s government.
More than 60 issues are expected to appear on the agenda, including measures to support Russian citizens, military personnel, and the economy.
The task of the State Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, is to consider the issues as soon as possible and not to leave them for the fall, State Duma speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said, according to Russian news media reports.
Volodin said last week at a meeting Putin attended with lawmakers that the State Duma would help two areas controlled by Russia-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine to develop a legal system there.
In announcing the session, the State Duma said “issues that need urgent solutions have accumulated” and “government initiatives” need to be considered.
It listed amendments on competition and information policy that would be discussed at the extraordinary session, which was announced on July 11, less than a week after the spring session ended.
Vladimir Vasilyev, head of the pro-Putin United Russia party, which has 325 seats in the 450-seat parliament, said that lawmakers would discuss more than 60 issues at the session.
"It is necessary that the processes going on now receive a legal response," Vasilyev said on the party's Telegram channel.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists at a briefing on July 12 that Putin does not plan to attend the meeting or make any statements.
The session comes as Russia faces mounting domestic, economic, and foreign policy challenges related to the war in Ukraine.
RIA Novosti and Interfax quoted sources as saying the meeting will be of a technical nature and nothing extraordinary should be expected. State Duma deputies quoted did not rule out that “personnel issues” would be discussed but did not specify which ones.
Several lawmakers said the main reason for the session is a government reshuffle that will confirm Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov to the post of deputy prime minister, The Moscow Times reported.
Manturov, 53, was officially nominated for the position of deputy prime minister, minister of industry and trade, on July 13 after Putin signed a decree increasing the number of deputy prime ministers to 11.
Manturov's candidacy will be considered and he will speak to deputies about a government program that he will coordinate, Interfax said.
The news agency also quoted Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin as saying the introduction of the new position was necessitated by the need to make quick decisions in the face of unprecedented Western sanctions leveled against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
Industries are subject to various restrictions and prohibitions, "and it is necessary to respond as flexibly as possible to the current dynamics,” Mishustin said at a Russian government meeting last week, according to Interfax.
There also have been reports in Russian media quoting unidentified sources indicating that a broader government shakeup could be in the works.