Complex sentence: Gref was first appointed as Minister of the newly formed Ministry of Economic Development and Trade by Vladimir Putin on May 18,2000 until Putin sacked Mikhail Kasyanov's Cabinet in March 2004.
Split into simpler sentences: Gref was first appointed as Minister of the newly formed Ministry of Economic Development and Trade by Vladimir Putin on May 18,2000. He held the position from 2000 until Putin sacked Mikhail Kasyanov's Cabinet in March 2004.