Photo: Natalia Gubernatorova
Russian President Vladimir Putin has temporarily appointed Vasily Anokhin acting governor of the Smolensk region. This is stated in the corresponding decree published by the Kremlin.
The same decree dismisses the previous head of the region, Alexei Ostrovsky. Since 2012, he has been in charge of the region for more than 10 years.
Putin had previously met with Anokhin. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Anokhin previously served as head of the Russian government's regional development department.