Address to the Federal Assembly, in which he proposed several amendments to the constitution. Medvedev stated that he was resigning to allow President Putin to make the significant constitutional changes suggested by Putin regarding shifting power away from the presidency. Medvedev said that the constitutional changes would "significantly change Russia's balance of power". Putin accepted the resignation. Although Medvedev had ostensibly resigned voluntarily (part 1 of Article 117 of the constitution), the Executive Order that was released stated that Putin had dismissed the cabinet as per Article 83 (c) and part 2 of Article 117 of the constitution. Kommersant reported that the use of these sections revealed that it was Putin who had sacked Medvedev and that the resignation was not voluntary but forced, since these sections give power to the president to dissolve the government without explanation or motivation. Putin suggested that Medvedev take the post of deputy chairman of the Security Council. Deputy chairman of the Security Council (2020–present) On 16 January 2020, Medvedev was appointed to the post of deputy chairman of the Security Council of Russia. His salary was set at 618,713 rubles (8,723.85 USD). In a July interview with Komsomolskaya Pravda, Medvedev said he retains "good friendly relations" with President Putin, which was in contrast with the opinion of many circles that his departure from the role of prime minister was a result of a rift in the domestic policies of the two. Russian invasion of Ukraine In February 2022, after Russia was suspended from the Council of Europe due to its invasion of Ukraine, and subsequently announced its intention to withdraw from the organization, Medvedev stated that while the decision to suspend Russia was "unfair", it was also a "good opportunity" to reinstate the death penalty in Russia. He also stated that Russia didn't need diplomatic relations with the West and that the sanctions imposed on the country gave it good reason to pull out of dialogue on nuclear stability and potentially New START. On 6 July 2022, Medvedev wrote on Telegram that it would be "crazy to create tribunals or courts for the so-called investigation of Russia's actions", claiming the idea of "punishing a country that has one of the largest nuclear potentials" may potentially pose "a threat to the existence of humanity." Medvedev accused the United States of creating "chaos and devastation around the world under the guise of 'true democracy'", concluding