Dmitry Medvedev’s first act as Russia’s President has been to appoint his predecessor and mentor Vladimir Putin as the new Prime Minister. Constitutional limits on more than two terms in office forced Putin to make way for a successor and that successor was a protégé, Medvedev. A minutely choreographed transition wherein Medvedev as President would appoint Putin as Prime Minister will now allow the latter to continue wielding power even after leaving the Kremlin. Many expect Putin to use his stint as Prime Minister as a stop gap before he returns to the Kremlin again.

Under the Russian constitution, it is the President who enjoys sweeping powers. During Putin’s presidency, the Prime Minister’s role was rather toothless. That could now change. Unlike Medvedev, Putin is hugely popular – he had 80 per cent approval ratings at the end of his second term. He continues to head the United Russia party, which controls the Russian Duma. These will give him a role far bigger than that envisaged under the constitution. Besides, Putin has been quietly bolstering the role of the Prime Minister in the months preceding his exit from the Kremlin. Last month, for instance, he issued a decree that requires regional governors to submit annual reports to the Prime Minister’s office rather than to the Kremlin. But the possibility of Medvedev asserting himself once he settles down should not be ruled out. Putin too was virtually unknown when President Boris Yeltsin made him Prime Minister. And it did not take long for Putin to assert himself. Both Putin and Medvedev have repeatedly committed to working together. The question is whether they and the coteries that surround them can make this partnership happen.

As President, Putin presided over an economic boom in Russia, raised living standards of Russians, substantially tamed the power of the oligarchs, ended the war in Chechnya and re-asserted Russia’s position as an actor on the world stage. His performance with regard to democratising Russia - freeing its media, allowing opposition parties to function and ensuring that the rule of law prevails – was poor. This and bridging the growing gap between Russia’s rich and poor should be at the top of the agenda of the country’s new President and Prime Minister.