Politicians opposed to the acting President, Mr Vladimir Putin, were thrown into further disarray as the date for the presidential election was set yesterday for March 26th. The All-Russia section of the Fatherland-All Russia (OVR) coalition, which supported the former prime minister, Mr Yevgeny Primakov, in the parliamentary elections, yesterday switched its support to Mr Putin, according to one of the group's leading members, the Governor of St Petersburg, Mr Vladimir Yakovlev.
All-Russia is composed of regional governors and the presidents of autonomous ethnic republics. Its coalition with the Fatherland party of Moscow's Mayor, Mr Yuri Luzhkov, fared badly in last month's Duma elections, gaining only 66 seats in the 450-seat house.
A rift between Fatherland and All-Russia began to emerge as the final results came in and now that split seems to have been formalised.
Mr Primakov announced his candidature for the presidency just before the parliamentary vote, but this decision has yet to be finalised. Each candidate for the presidency in Russia must first gather one million signatures, a difficult task in the short period now available to those who wish to contest the elections.
The secretary of Fatherland-All Russia's co-ordinating committee, Mr Oleg Morozov, said yesterday that Mr Primakov may fight the election as the candidate of an "initiative group" instead of under the OVR banner. "Primakov may, of course, make this decision independently of the bloc," Mr Morozov said.
There was speculation in political circles that the Communist Party, which once more won the largest number of seats in the Duma, might drop its own candidate, Mr Gennady Zyuganov, in favour of forming an alliance with Mr Primakov. Mr Zyuganov, a lacklustre campaigner, was defeated by the former president, Mr Boris Yeltsin, in the presidential election of 1996 and stands very little chance of winning this time.
Alliance or no alliance, Mr Putin seems virtually certain to gain Russia's presidency. Even if the Chechen war, on which he has built his popularity, begins to go against Russian forces, his standing may not be dented. The two main national TV channels which united to launch a vicious propaganda campaign against OVR in the Duma elections are unlikely to report major Russian losses until the campaign is over.
Apart from Mr Zyuganov and Mr Primakov, Mr Putin's rivals in the campaign are likely to be the governor of Krasnoyarsk, Gen Alexander Lebed, and the ultra-nationalist Mr Vladimir Zhirinovsky. A loyal supporter of Mr Yeltsin, Mr Zhirinovsky is likely to draw support away from other anti-Putin candidates. The liberal politician, Mr Grigory Yavlinsky, is expected to announce his candidature shortly.
Gen Lebed, who at one stage appeared to be developing into a major force in Russian politics, faded from the national scene when he decided to contest the governorship of Krasnoyarsk, a Siberian city far from the centre of Russian politics. His chances appear slim.
In Chechnya the battle for Grozny continued yesterday with both sides claiming successes in the continuing propaganda war. The Defence Minister, Mr Igor Sergeyev, announced once more that the operation to take Grozny was going according to plan. Chechen sources, on the other hand, claimed to have inflicted severe casualties on Russian forces.
The Chechen leader, Mr Aslan Maskhadov, yesterday asked for a three-day ceasefire, but Russia promptly turned down the request calling it a ploy to gain time.
Reuters adds: Russia's former president, Mr Boris Yeltsin, began a trip to the Holy Land yesterday to mark the first Orthodox Christmas of the new millennium in Bethlehem.
Despite his sudden resignation on New Year's Eve, Mr Yeltsin will be accorded all the honours of a serving head of state during the three-day visit.
Mr Yeltsin will attend a Mass in Jerusalem this evening, Orthodox Christmas Eve, and again tomorrow, Christmas morning, in Bethlehem.
