The Duma is the lower house of the Russian parliament, and is roughly equivalent to the House of Representatives, or, more specifically, the lower houses of most European parliaments.
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And if the president can dissolve the Duma for hindering Prime minister replacement, why does he need to get their approval on a new cabinet? Is it just an example of separation of powers?
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The president needs the Duma's approval of a new cabinet because the Russian constitution says so. And, generally in parliamentary, when governments are unable to formed, the head of state can dissolve parliament and call for new elections.
This hasn't happened here, though; the cabinet was dismissed, not the parliament, and the cabinet was dismissed because the constitution requires that for changes to be made in its composition. There was to be a change at prime minister for whatever reason, and to accomplish it the entire government had to be dismissed. It was also unlikely to have happened, since parliament is dominated by the United Russia party, which supports Putin, and will confirm whoever he appoints.
What I don't understand is why everyone else seems to think this is an example of the great power of the Russian presidency; making the entire cabinet resign when he wants to make changes is actually a check on his ability to appoint ministers as he chooses. The U.S. President doesn't need to fire his entire cabinet in order to pick a new Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, and European prime ministers can shuffle ministerial assignments around essentially as they choose.
How ya doing, buddy?
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Lord Styphon