Vladimir Babichev

Vladimir Stepanovich Babichev (Владимир Степанович Бабичев; 11 January 1939 – 15 December 2010) was a Soviet and Russian politician and former Chief of Staff of the Russian Government (1994–1998).

Vladimir Babichev was born on 11 January 1939 in Sadovoye village in northern Kalmyk ASSR, near the border with Volgograd Oblast.

Sarpinsky District of Kalmykia, where Sadovoye is located, is a Russian majority district.

In 1956-1957 Babichev worked in a kolkhoz.

In 1962 Babichev graduated Volgograd Institute of Urban Economy and received the degree of "construction engineer".

After graduation Babichev returned to Kalmykia and until 1963 worked as master and foreman of repair and construction management in Elista.

In 1963 he was appointed as Chief Engineer and Deputy Minister of Communal Utilities of Kalmyk ASSR.

In 1964 Babichev became precinct chief of department "Promzhylstroy" but later worked as chief engineer mobile mechanised column and head of the department in "Kalmykstroy" trust.

In 1966 Vladimir Babichev joined Communist Party of the Soviet Union and was its member until the party was banned in August 1991.

Babichev started his governmental career and became Deputy Chairman of the Elista City Executive Committee in 1966.

In 1969-1974 Babichev worked as Minister of Communal Utilities of Kalmyk ASSR.

In 1972 he graduated Correspondence Higher Party School of the Central Committee of CPSS.

Babichev was elevated to the position of Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Kalmykia in 1974.

In 1977 Babichev became Secretary of the Kalmyk Regional Committee of CPSS.

In 1981 Vladimir Babichev graduated Academy of Social Studies of the Central Committee of CPSS, where he received Candidate of Historical Sciences degree.

Babichev wrote a dissertation "Organisational Party Work Improvement under Concentration and Specialisation in Construction"

Later in 1981 Babichev was assigned to Astrakhan Oblast, where he served as secretary of the Astrakhan Oblast Committee of CPSS.

There Babichev also met Viktor Chernomyrdin, at that time he was an instructor of heavy industry department of the Central Committee of CPSS and curated Astrakhan Gas Processing Plant's construction.

In 1985 Babichev was promoted to the second secretary of the Oblast Committee.

In 1986 Vladimir Babichev was moved to the Central Committee of CPSS in Moscow, where he was an inspector of the Central Committee.

In 1987-1989 Babichev was head of sector and deputy head of the department of party building and personnel management in the Central Committee of CPSS.

Since 1989 Babichev was first deputy head of that department.

On 18 March 1990 Vladimir Babichev was elected people's deputy of RSFSR from Priyutnoye national-territorial constituency No.107 in western Kalmykia.

Babichev was elected to the Soviet of Nationalities of the Supreme Soviet of RSFSR, where he was a member of the Commission on Social and Economic Development of Republics, Autonomous Oblasts, Autonomous Okrugs and Indigenous Small-Numbered People.

At the XXVIII Congress of CPSS in July 1990 Babichev was elected Member of the Central Committee of CPSS.

At the I Congress of People's Deputies of Russian SFSR (22 June 1990) Vladimir Babichev attacked newly-elected Chairman of the Supreme Soviet Boris Yeltsin and offered him to nominate Aleksandr Vlasov, Yeltin's opponent in chairmanship election, for Chairman of the Council of Ministers of RSFSR in order to "unite the divided Congress".

Yeltsin rebuked Babichev for non-compliance with ethic culture and declined to nominate Vlasov, as the former proposed 3 candidacies for Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Vice Chairman Ivan Silayev, Moscow Aviation Institute rector Yury Ryzhov and president of BUTEK conglomerate Mikhail Bocharov).

Babichev also voted against Yeltsin's proposal to depoliticise army and

law enforcement (disband CPSS organisations there).

At the II Congress of People's Deputies (27 November — 15 December 1990) Babichev voted against the establishment of President of Russian SFSR position.

After the August 1991 coup attempt Communist Party of the Soviet Union was banned by Yeltsin's decree, thus leaving Babichev without a full-time job in the party's Central Committee.

In September 1991 Vladimir Babichev received the job as deputy general director of Gazmash factory, a subsidiary of Gazprom, led by Viktor Chernomyrdin.

Babichev was member of establishment communist Communists of Russia faction (June 1990, December 1992), military-aligned Fatherland faction (1991) and centrist Sovereignty and Equality faction (1992-1993), which united deputies from Russian autonomies.

Due to Babichev's election as people's deputy he was appointed Head of the Department of Legislative Initiatives and Legal Issues of the Central Committee of CPSS.

In June 1994 President Boris Yeltsin at a press conference expressed his displeasure with Apparatus of the Government of Russia activity and demanded Viktor Chernomyrdin to make personnel rearrangements in the Apparatus.

On 14 November 1994 Chernomyrdin unexpectedly fired his Chief of Staff Vladimir Kvasov and replaced him with Vladimir Babichev.

During his service as Chief of Staff Babichev was widely regarded as an éminence grise due to his close relations with Chernomyrdin during their work in the Central Committee of CPSS and Gazprom.

Babichev also had ties with former nomeklatura and newly-reformed Communist Party.

Since January 1995 Babichev was member of the Presidential Council for Personnel Policy.

In June 1995 Babichev gave an interview to Obshchaya Gazeta, where he claimed that he never was in opposition to Boris Yeltsin rather he disliked Yeltin's circle.