Putin raises suspicions of renewed interest for Russian presidency

In an annual meeting with Russia world experts known as the Valdai Club, Putin said yesterday "There was an American president, Roosevelt, who was elected four times in a row because the law allowed it.”

Putin, 57, ruled Russia as president from 2000-2008, for a maximum of two consecutive terms as allowed by the Russian constitution, after which he handed over to Medvedev.

Roosevelt had served an unprecedented four terms as president of the US, from 1933 to 1945, spanning the Great Depression to World War II. He had died just before the Allied victory over Nazi Germany.

"Neither me nor President Medvedev will do anything that runs counter to the basic law, the constitution of the Russian Federation," Putin said during the meeting.

Experts hold the belief that Putin holds the real power in Russia and has been planning to return to the Kremlin in 2012.

Speculation was rife over whether Putin or President Dmitry Medvedev would stand in the 2012 polls and Putin pledged that neither he nor the current president would do anything against the Russian constitution.

Liberal political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin said "Putin needs to run for the presidency, whether he likes it or not, as he cannot step aside. Creators of an authoritarian regime always have problems with stepping down."

"The names that he mentions -- be it Roosevelt, Gandhi or Napoleon -- shows in what ranks he counts himself," he said.

Putin recently praised US president Barack Obama for his decisions on foreign policy, citing him as "a very deep, profound person with his own view of the world."

He also pledged that the South Stream pipeline project, crossing the Black Sea, would be finished swiftly.