[1][2] Kristenko graduated in 1979 from Chelyabinsk Mechanical Engineering Institute with a specialization in construction management and Economics.

[5] In 1998, Viktor Khristenko was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister for Economy and Finance in Sergei Kiriyenko's Cabinet.

Khristenko was described as a "broadly reformist technocrat," who had shown "loyalty mixed with extreme caution," unlike the outgoing prime minister who had "openly disagreed with Mr Putin several times, criticizing the criminal investigations into the owners of Yukos.

[8] The Washington Post called Kasyanov "the most powerful ally of big business remaining in the Russian government."

[9] Two weeks ahead of the 2004 presidential election, Putin however nominated Mikhail Fradkov to become the next prime minister, four days later to be confirmed by the State Duma.