CNN logo
Navigation
 
COMMUNITY 
Message Boards 
Chat 
Feedback 

SITE SOURCES 
Contents 
Help! 
Search 
CNN Networks 

SPECIALS 
Quick News 
Almanac 
Video Vault 
News Quiz 




Pathfinder/Warner Bros


Barnes and Noble



Election Watch grfk

Q & A

Insight
World banner
rule
Now quicker European access

Communist chief vows to defy Yeltsin over PM

Gennady Zyaganov
Gennady Zyuganov Tuesday in Moscow   
April 22, 1998
Web posted at: 11:11 a.m. EDT (1511 GMT)

MOSCOW (CNN) -- Russian Communist leader Gennady Zyuganov vowed Wednesday to call President Boris Yeltsin's bluff by rejecting his choice of prime minister and forcing him to dissolve parliament.

"We are ready for elections," Zyuganov told reporters on Red Square beneath the fortress walls of the Kremlin, Yeltsin's seat of power.

Zyuganov leads the largest faction in parliament, which will hold a third and final vote Friday on Yeltsin's nominee for prime minister, Sergei Kiriyenko. With the Communists leading the way, parliament has rejected the 35-year-old former energy minister twice in the past two weeks, calling him too young and inexperienced.

If they vote down Kiriyenko again on Friday, Yeltsin is required under Russia's constitution to dismiss the lower house, or State Duma, and call new elections.

"I will persuade the Communists to vote against Sergei Kiriyenko," Zyuganov said in Red Square after laying a wreath at Lenin's Tomb to mark the 128th anniversary of the birth of the founder of the Soviet Union.

Yeltsin has announced plans to meet with the speakers of both parliament houses on Thursday in a final effort to ensure Kiriyenko is approved by the Duma. But Yeltsin's press service said his stance remains unchanged.

"The president's position on Sergei Kiriyenko's nomination as prime minister is final and cannot be changed," a presidential press service official said.

The stage could be set for a showdown, as the Duma opened its session Wednesday by approving a new land code fiercely opposed by Yeltsin. He wants the free sale of arable land but the code does not provide for it.

Despite the mood of conflict, chinks have appeared in the opposition's armor, and the Communists have a track record of backing down when it comes to the crunch.

Many Communists could break ranks and back Kiriyenko because they fear losing their parliamentary seats and perks. This would be more likely if a secret ballot is held Friday, making it possible to ignore Zyuganov's orders without risking sanction.

To win confirmation, Kiriyenko needs a simple majority, or 226 votes in the 450-seat Duma.

Even if the Duma rejects him, Kiriyenko is still likely to become prime minister. The constitution stipulates that if the chamber has been dissolved, the president can install his premier without seeking parliament's approval.

Upper house speaker Yegor Stroyev believes a solution will be found. Asked if the upper house would be told about the results of Thursday's meeting with Yeltsin, he told reporters: "You will find out that the Duma will not be dissolved."

Yeltsin has met twice with parliamentary leaders to discuss the crisis and held a round-table meeting of key political forces to give them a chance to voice their demands.

But he has rejected Communist proposals to form a coalition government, refused to drop Kiriyenko and ruled out any constitutional changes, even though he would like to avoid an election more than a year ahead of schedule.

The cost would be a blow which the economy can ill afford in a year in which Yeltsin has promised economic growth.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

 
rule

Newsmaker profiles:

Related stories:

Related sites:

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.

Infoseek search  

Message Boards Sound off on our
message boards & chat
Back to the top

© 1998 Cable News Network, Inc.
A Time Warner Company
All Rights Reserved.

Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.