Putin Names Ex-Bodyguard to Top Post, Stoking Successor Talk
- Alexey Dyumin appointed as secretary of Russia’s State Council
- Dyumin had role in Crimea seizure, plays ice hockey with Putin
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President Vladimir Putin appointed Alexey Dyumin to a top Russian state post, prompting speculation that an official who was once his personal bodyguard is being groomed as a potential successor.
Putin named 51-year-old Dyumin as secretary of the State Council, according to a Kremlin statement published Wednesday. The body responsible for developing “strategic goals and tasks of domestic and foreign policy” draws together Kremlin and government officials with lawmakers and regional leaders.