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Oleg Morozov | |
|---|---|
Олег Морозов | |
_(cropped).jpg) Morozov in 2020 | |
| Member of theState Duma forTatarstan | |
| Assumed office 23 September 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Airat Khairullin |
| Constituency | Nizhnekamsk (No. 28) |
| In office 11 January 1994 – 24 December 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency Established |
| Succeeded by | Constituencies Abolished |
| Constituency | Moskovsky (No. 27) (1994-2003) Naberezhnye Chelny (No. 29) (2003-2007) |
| Member of theState Duma (Party List Seat) | |
| In office 24 December 2007 – 6 June 2012 | |
| Russian Federation Senator from theRepublic of Tatarstan | |
| In office 18 September 2015 – 18 September 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Sergey Batin |
| Succeeded by | Lenar Safin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Oleg Viktorovich Morozov (1953-11-05)November 5, 1953 (age 72) |
| Political party | United Russia |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parents |
|
| Alma mater | Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov University,Kazan |
| Occupation | Politician |
Oleg Viktorovich Morozov (Russian:Олег Викторович Морозов) is aRussian and formerSoviet politician. He has the federal state civilian service rank of1st class Active State Councillor of the Russian Federation.[1] He was a deputy in theState Duma between 1993 and 2012 and again since 2020.[2][a] He served as a member of theFederation Council between September 2015 and September 2020. From May 2012 till March 2015, he worked as head of thepresidential office for domestic policy.[4] He supportsthe United Russia party.[5][6]
During the early 1980s, before entering mainstream politics, he was himself employed in the universities sector. He is fluent inGerman.[7][8]
Morozov was born atKazan. His father, Victor Stepanivich Morozov, came originally from a farming community inIzmaylovo, a village in theBaryshsky District. Victor Stepanivich was a red army veteran of theGreat Patriotic War, which he survived with medals and the rank ofcolonel, despite being twice wounded. Ninella Georgievna, his mother, came originally from theKursk region, but had studied inKazan and was a graduate of"Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov University" (as it was known after 1925 during the Soviet era). She worked throughout her life for the local Defence Industries Enterprise.[9]
Morozov's parents were determined that the boy should go through the rest of his life equipped for "a real profession", and when, in 1971, the opportunity arose to move on to university his father urged him to obtain a practical degree, in a subject such as Engineering, Physics or Mathematics, but Morozov enrolled to study at the History-Philology faculty of theKazan Federal University[9] In 1976 Morozov graduated fromthe university with a so-called"red diploma" degree (indicating consistently high marks).[10]
In 1980 Morozov was offered the position of a research assistant at the History-Philology faculty, a position which could be combined with study for a postgraduate degree. The offer carried a virtual guarantee of a university job once the higher level degree had been obtained, and was also financially attractive in its own terms. He accepted the offer and for the next few years, as a "pre-professor" ("доцентом"), combined his research and study with teaching students.[9][10] In 1980 he successfully defended his doctoral dissertation with the title "critical analysis of West German interpretations of socialist internationalism in theory and in practice" ("Критический анализ западногерманских интерпретаций теории и практики социалистического интернационализма") and received his doctorate.[11]
Also in 1980 he was sent to teach at theuniversity department for"Scientific communism" ("Научный коммунизм"). At around the same time he was awarded a"Candidate of Philosophical Sciences" ("кандидат философских наук") degree, an interim higher-level degree marking a significant step along the path to a full university professorship.[9]
During 1983–84 he undertook a one-year internship in the department for Political Sciences at theUniversity of Bonn inWest Germany. It was a highly unusual opportunity at the time: he appears to have been selected for it simply because he had been identified as "one of the department's most successful teachers".[10] On his return toKazan in 1984, he settled to progressing what seemed likely to be a stellar career at the university. There was an important dissertation to be completed.[12] A year laterPerestroika arrived and across theSoviet Union a lot of the old assumptions began to shift in all sorts of ways - and at a speed - that few would have anticipated until theGorbachev changes suddenly began. In 1985 Morozov was elected to membership of theuniversityparty committee ("партком").[9]
At around the same time, still only aged 29, Morozov was offered and accepted auniversity assistant-professorship in the department for"Scientific communism" ("Научный коммунизм").[13] Between 1985 and 1987 he served as a deputy secretary with theuniversityparty committee.[14] Later, at 33, he became the chief of the regional department foragitation and propaganda. Between 1987 and 1989 he headed up the Tartar regional committee department for theCPSU nationally, a position he held concurrently with the regional Agitprop headship.[13]
In 1989 he accepted a new job, working now as an instructor at the Central Committee's Science and Education department. Working directly for the Party Central Committee was in many respects a significant promotion, but it meant relocating toMoscow: that meant leaving the city which he loved and in which he had lived all his life. It meant missing out on the company and support of many friends. TheGorbachev changes since 1985 nevertheless meant that the gerontocracy was losing its monopoly of power and influence. There were already large numbers of new faces around the Central Committee.[9] As soon as it became obvious that everything was "going well" Morozov's family joined him in Moscow.[12]
By1991 Morozov was working as an assistant to the chief of staff ofPresident Gorbachev. His immediate superior in the government hierarchy wasValery Boldin, a leader among the government insiders whoremoved the president from office later that year. The coup d'état took place during the holiday month of August while the Morozovs were out of town. They were staying with friends inVolgograd. When they got back to Moscow they found there was no one who would give Morozov another government job. For a year the family lived on Irina Morozovna's university salary of 120roubles a month, while Morozov tried to get casual driving jobs where he could. The couple'sDaewoo was their own andKazan, where they had retained theirdacha, was "only" a twelve-hour drive to the east by road: Morozov reassured his family that when he was driving it was a sign that he was resting.[12] He also found some newspaper work between 1991 and 1993, contributing as a columnist to"Soviet Tartaria" ("Советская Татария"), a newspaper based inKazan.[15] Only after a year and a half did he find more permanent work, employed by a non-profit operation called "NPO Biology" ("НПО Биотехнологии"), initially responsible for public relations, and later listed as a deputy director.[12]
Following the"Black October" crisis, national elections were held inDecember 1993 for the newly reconfiguredRussian Duma (lower house of parliament /"Государственная дума"). Morozov was one of those elected as a deputy (member) of the legislature. He continued to serve without a break till May 2012. At each of the six general elections held between 1993 and 2011 he stood for election, successfully, in asingle member constituency inTatarstan, representingNaberezhnye Chelny andKazan.[4]
In thefirst Duma convocation, which sat for two years, Morozov presided over the parliamentary subcommittee on co-operation between the regions.[2] In thesecond andthird convocations, which ran respectively from 1995 till 1999 and from 1999 till 2003, he headed the parliamentary group concerned with theregions of Russia.[6] During the 1990s a relationship of some distance seems to have existed between Morozov andPresident Yeltsin: sources sympathetic to Morozov suggest that Yeltsin mistrusted Morozov's independence of spirit, while Morozov had no patience with what he regarded as the president's tsarist pretensions. During the first decade of the new millennium Morozov succeeded in creating a more constructive relationship, involving a growing measure of mutual respect, withPresident Putin.[9] In thefourth convocation Morozov was a member of the emerging, and broadly pro-government,United Russia grouping.[6][9] Between 23 December 2003 and 25 May 2012 Morozov served as one of the twelveDeputy Chairmen of theState Duma. Through most of that period, between 2005 and 2011, he was indeed"First Deputy Chairman" of the parliament.[14] Thefifth convocation ran for four years between December 2007 and December 2011. He served as a member of the parliamentary budget and taxation committee.[14] In 2010Forbes Russia published a report ranking the "most influential lobbyists" in theDuma. The report was presented in the context of an investigation into the links between business and politics. Morozov was reckoned to have achieved success with 21 of the 58 parliamentary bolls introduced, placing him comfortably in the magazine's "top ten": he ended up in sixth place. Reports also noted the correlation between his high ranking according to the journalists' somewhat mechanistic criteria and the extent of government orders to the defence industry factories of Tatarstan, and of other central government investment in socio-economic support for the region.[16]
Following the extension of parliamentary terms, in 2011 Morozov was elected to thesixth convocation of the Duma, listed for the election as aUnited Russia candidate. He was again installed as a deputy chairman of the assembly and he again served as a member of the parliamentary budget and taxation committee. His parliamentary powers and duties were terminated ahead of schedule, however, on 6 June 2012, in connection with his transfer to the presidential office.[14]
Between 25 May 2012 and 23 March 2015 Morozov served underVladimir Putin as "Head of the office of the President of the Russian Federation for Internal Policy".[17][18][b]
On 18 September 2015Rustam Minnikhanov, in his capacity asPresident of Tatarstan, nominated Morozov to serve as asenator in theFederation Council ("Совет Федерации").[19] During his five-year term Morozov represented theState Council of the Republic of Tatarstan in the national council (parliament) ofthe Russian Federation. He also served, within the Federation Council, as a member of the International Affairs Committee.[14]
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During the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, he wanted Russia to "de-nazify"Ukraine, and after that to do the same toPoland.[20] He has suggested that Russia could attack Tower Bridge in London.[21]
Morozov is subject to financial sanctions from the EU.[22]
From 1974 to 2015 he was married to Zemfira "Irina" Gubaidullina Morozova. He has two children. In 1999, during an interview, Morozov was"outed" by his wife as a collector of hippopotami.[12]
