BRIEFS

–KADYROV AND ALKHANOV CALL FOR A THIRD TERM FOR PUTIN

The political council of the Chechen branch of the pro-Kremlin United Russia party is going to introduce in Russia’s parliament an initiative to amend the Russian constitution to allow President Vladimir Putin to serve more than two consecutive terms. Lenta.ru on July 26 quoted Chechen Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov, who heads the Chechen branch of United Russia, as calling for such an initiative during a press conference. “We see how the authority of the Russian state is growing in the international arena; we see how much attention the president is devoting to Russia’s regions, including the Chechen Republic,” Kadyrov said. In pushing for a third term for Putin, Kadyrov was following on the heels of Chechen President Alu Alkhanov. Interfax reported on July 19 that Alkhanov had sent an official letter to the Chechen parliament asking it to draft a legislative initiative in the State Duma to lift the two-term restriction on the Russian president.