Top Russian officials’ incomes under lock and key

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Published: 04 May, 2010, 21:48
Edited: 13 September, 2010, 23:20

TAGS: Medvedev, Russia, Obama, Merkel, Prime Time Russia, Corruption

Despite the Russian President’s call for higher transparency in the country, the incomes of almost half of the country’s top officials still remain secret – even after the deadline to disclose them expired.

According to the decree published last year, the President himself and all senior members of the government and the administration had to disclose their tax returns and earnings by April 30, 2010, so that people could know how much their leaders earn and from where.

However, almost half of the governors of Russia’s regions failed to support the move to battle corruption and to raise transparency, still hiding the data concerning their personal incomes.

Observers believe that the reason for such behavior is that the decree did not stipulate any sanctions for those who do not obey it.

Russia’s President and Prime Minister, however, were on time to disclose how much they earned. According to their data, President Medvedev earned just over 3 million roubles (about $115,000), which is actually not much compared to his colleagues – US President Obama earns 4 times as much per year and German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s income this year amounted to $200,000.

The man who earned the most this year in the Russian administration was the Minister of National Resources and Ecology, Yury Trutnev, with 155 million roubles ($5 million).