November 30, 1999
Web posted at: 5:44 a.m. EST (1044 GMT)

MOSCOW (CNN) -- Russian President Boris Yeltsin should be back on his feet soon after being hospitalized for a possible case of pneumonia, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, said on Tuesday.

Yeltsin was taken to hospital on Monday after doctors detected signs he might be developing pneumonia. His spokesman said he would stay in hospital for about a week.

"The president did not want to go to the hospital, but the doctors told him it was necessary," Putin said.

"I think it was the right thing to do. It will help put him back on his feet quickly," he added. "His condition is satisfactory," Putin said.

Yeltsin's doctors had made no comment on his condition early Tuesday afternoon.

Putin said Yeltsin has several items awaiting him when he returns to work, including the signing of a landmark union treaty with former Soviet neighbor Belarus. Yeltsin already has scrapped all meetings with international leaders until December 6.

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Ordinary Russians are reacted calmly to the news that Yeltsin, 68, was hospitalized again. After all, Yeltsin frequently has been ill, and Putin is handling most day-to- day functions of government now -- including the war in Chechnya.

Yeltsin had a heart bypass operation in 1996, and his health has worsened over the last 18 months. He suffered a bout of pneumonia in November of last year and has also had a bleeding stomach ulcer this year.

Yeltsin had been expected to travel to China later in the month. He had also hoped to spend Christmas in Bethlehem.

Correspondent Matthew Chance and Reuters contributed to this report.