Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Medvedev: Putin to be My Premier


A day after President Vladimir V. Putin endorsed a loyal protégé, Dmitri A. Medvedev, as his successor, Mr. Medvedev went before the nation today and declared that he in turn wanted to name Mr. Putin as his prime minister.

The announcement could bring to a close questions about how Mr. Putin intends to wield influence over Russia after his term ends next year. Mr. Putin is barred by the Constitution from running for a third consecutive term, but he had indicated in recent months that he had no intention of giving up all his power when he steps down in the spring.

Mr. Medvedev has no background in the state security services and virtually no power base in the Kremlin, and he is seen here as a relatively weak figure beholden to Mr. Putin. With Mr. Putin as prime minister, it would appear that little would change in who controls Russia.

Some analysts conjectured that Mr. Medvedev could even step down before his term as president ends — clearing the way for Mr. Putin to be elevated from prime minister to president, which would be possible under the Constitution.

In his speech to the nation today, Mr. Medvedev said that for Russia to continue on the path set by Mr. Putin since he took office in 2000, Mr. Putin need to stay in a position of authority. Mr. Medvedev repeatedly praised what he said were Mr. Putin’s achievements in improving living standards in Russia. Mr. Medvedev also echoed Mr. Putin’s comments in recent months praising Russia’s revival on the world stage.


That settles that.

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