On 14 August 2000 , as vice-premier , President Putin put him in charge of the Kursk rescue operation following its disastrous sinking . On 29 or 20 August , he announced that the likely cause of the sinking was a " strong ' dynamic external impact ' corresponding with ' first event ' " , probably a collision with a foreign submarine or a large surface ship , or striking a World War II mine . This later proved to be completely unfounded . In February 2002 , Putin designated Klebanov as Minister of Industry , Science and Technology . This move was seen as a demotion by many
rescue operation
Kursk submarine disaster
Ilya Klebanov