Yeltsin prepares to cede tsar-like hold on powers

MOSCOW, Aug 29: Under unprecedented pressure to resign, a besieged president Boris Yeltsin suggested today he would cede some of his powe...

MOSCOW, Aug 29: Under unprecedented pressure to resign, a besieged president Boris Yeltsin suggested today he would cede some of his powers to ensure a smooth confirmation hearing for his heir apparent Viktor Chernomyrdin.Taking the cue, Chernomyrdin appeared on national television to urge Russians not to panic amid the furious financial storm whipping the country since he had both their life’s savings and the ruble firmly under his control.

Exactly what type of control that might be, however, was causing some concern in the West, with a top International Monetary Fund official warning sternly that Chernomyrdin must not roll back the clock on reform. Yeltsin enjoys nearly tsar-like authority under the 1993 constitution that was tailor-made for the Russian president.

The opposition-led state Duma, the lower house of parliament, has been little more than a spirited debating club as a result. But the president’s parliamentary envoy, Alexander Kotenkiov, for the first time today said Yeltsin had bowed to law-makers and agreed that Russia’s basic law was "not ideal" in its current form.

Story continues below this ad

Kotenkov said Yeltsin had also given his blessing to a provision in a new power-sharing agreement now under discussion in the Duma that grants broader powers to the cabinet and its ministers.

Yeltsin wants Chernomyrdin’s government “to independently lead its politics within the frameworks of the Russian constitution,” kotenkov told a press conference.

Oleg Morozov, chairman of the committee now drafting the new political treaty, said parliamentarians and government representatives “agreed the basic points of the political agreement” so coveted by the Leftists in parliament, Itar-Tass reported.

Law-makers found themselves in an unprecedented bargaining position after Yeltsin on August 23 sacked the technocratic government of Sergei Kiriyenko and re-appointed Chernomyrdin as cabinet chief only five months after giving him the boot.

Story continues below this ad

The Duma is due to hold confirmation hearings over his candidacy on Monday.While Chernomyrdin’s industrial policy is more to the Duma’s taste than the tight monetarism of Kiriyenko, law-makers have dug in their heels – they want Yeltsin’s powers, and several top cabinet assignments as well.

Sensing both the Duma’s resolve and the catastrophe that would descend in Russia were it to battle against an economic maelstrom without a confirmed government, the Kremlin said Yeltsin is prepared to listen.