MAGAS, October 20 (RIA Novosti) - Ingushetia's parliament approved on Tuesday a former Federal Security Service officer as prime minister of the volatile south Russian republic, following his predecessor's dismissal earlier this month.
The legislature voted overwhelmingly for Alexei Vorobyov, whose candidacy was proposed by President Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, but analysts said the appointment of an ethnic Russian premier could stir resentment in influential clans in the predominantly Muslim North Caucasus republic.
Yevkurov dismissed the province's government on October 5, accusing it of failure to tackle socioeconomic problems and corruption.
Vorobyov, 45, said that as premier he would improve "control of funds allocated from the federal budget," tackle preparations for the winter season, and focus on healthcare, education and efforts to curb corruption.
In a speech after the vote, Yevkurov told the new premier: "It is hard to say whether we should congratulate you or express sympathy, as you are in for a very difficult job."
Ingushetia is one of Russia's poorest regions, which has also been hit by a series of high-profile attacks on police and officials recently. Yevkurov survived a suicide car bomb attack on his motorcade in June.
Russian analysts earlier welcomed the dismissal of the government, saying the republic needs radical change. The region's economic backwardness and surge of violence have been seen as a result of separatist wars in neighboring Chechnya and local inter-clan rivalry.
Vorobyov arrived in Ingushetia along with Yevkurov, a former intelligence officer, in 2008 as his advisor, but soon became head of the republic's Security Service.
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