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Putin now has one more friend in Russia’s highest court.
Irina Podnosova, a university classmate of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has been confirmed as the new chair of Russia’s Supreme Court, the Upper House of the Russian Parliament announced in a statement Wednesday on Telegram.
“She has the highest qualification class of a judge and 34 years of experience as a judge,” the statement said.
Podnosova, who previously held the position of deputy chair of the Supreme Court, was nominated on April 1 as the sole candidate for the post following the death of Vyacheslav Lebedev, who had served as the Supreme Court’s chairman since 1991.
She was put forward by a collegium of judges for the post — the highest-ranking position in Russia’s federal judicial system — on Monday after only 10 minutes of deliberation, Novaya Gazeta reported.
Both Podnosova and Putin studied law at Leningrad State University, from which they graduated in 1975.
Podnosova received the unanimous backing of 167 senators in the Federation Council – proof enough for the Kremlin that there is “no gender inequality” in Russia, Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
In February, Ukraine sanctioned Podnosova for ensuring “the subordination of the formally independent judicial system” to Russian leadership and supporting the invasion of Ukraine as a member of the Supreme Court.
