Putin still the power behind Russian 'throne'

Moscow, May 21: Vladimir Putin remains the country's real power ,Russian president Dmitry Medvedev ,one of his closest allies has confirmed.

According to, Igor Yurgens, one of Medvedev's most trusted aides, Putin has kept most of the presidential powers with him. "There are difficulties in having a very strong president and a new but not so strong - bureaucratically, I mean, not intellectually - president," Yurgens told European business executives at a conference in Moscow," said Yurgens. "Things are in a state of flux." Telegraph quoted him as saying.

Critics who had suspected Putin's swap was little more than a power grab are surprised by Yurgens's comments .They also believe his power swap was to manouvre around the Constitutional prohibition that prevented Putin from serving a third presidential term.

He has created a Soviet-style presidium that includes a defence, foreign and interior ministers who will report to him rather than to Medvedev.

Putin's announcement of major policy initiatives has dominated state television news coverage.

It included a 240 billion pound programme to overhaul Russia's dilapidated transport infrastructure.

ANI