RUSSIA:The prospect of Russia moving into a post-Putin era swiftly receded yesterday when his anointed successor, Dmitry Medvedev, said he wanted Vladimir Putin to become Russia's prime minister next year once his term as president expires.
In a television address, Mr Medvedev said Mr Putin should lead the government after Russia's March 2nd presidential elections. The move means that Mr Putin would continue as Russia's de facto leader, and sets the stage for his possible return as president in Russia's next election in 2012, if not sooner.
"It is crucial for our country to keep Vladimir Putin in a top position in our executive," Mr Medvedev said, a day after winning Mr Putin's backing as candidate for president.
Mr Medvedev added: "Expressing my readiness to run as a candidate for president, I ask him [ Mr Putin] to agree to head the government of Russia after the election of the new president."
He went on: "It is not enough to choose the new president who can divide up all those responsibilities. It's no less important to preserve the capable team formed by the current president."
The announcement appears to end the mystery about what role Mr Putin will play once his term in office ends. Under Russia's constitution he is obliged to step down after two consecutive terms. There is nothing, however, to stop him coming back.
Mr Putin has already said he intends to "influence" his successor and hinted in October during a congress of his United Russia party that he was considering the prime minister's job.
Yesterday analysts said there was no doubt that Mr Putin would remain in charge of Russia's foreign and domestic policy. He would also exercise decisive influence over the military and security agencies, they said.
"The country will be run by a tandem, but Putin will be the senior partner," said Boris Makarenko, deputy director of Moscow's Centre for Political Technologies. "This is the beginning. After that there are two scenarios. Putin can become president again after an interlude. Or he will eventually reduce his own role in politics and have Medvedev develop into a full-scale leader. Both ways are open."
"Medvedev won't be a mere puppet of Putin," said Grigorii V Golosov, a professor in the faculty of political sciences and sociology at St Petersburg's European University. "But the pattern of co-operation between them developed over the past 17 years will continue. Putin will assume the senior role in the relationship."
Russia's opposition parties said Mr Medvedev's offer amounted to an illegitimate power grab by Mr Putin. They also predicted that the powersharing deal, with a "technical" president, wouldn't work.
"Having two tsars is very dangerous for the stability of Russia's political system," Andrey Piontkovsky warned on the website of the opposition group Other Russia.