By RIA Novosti,
Moscow : All of Russia’s 83 regions have approved Constitutional amendments to extend presidential and parliamentary terms, the upper house of the country’s parliament said in a resolution Monday.
In line with the Constitution, the approval of at least two thirds of regional legislatures was required to extend the current four-year presidential and parliamentary terms to six and five years, respectively.
“We will submit the resolution for signing to the president,” Federation Council Speaker Sergei Mironov said.
The proposal was made by President Dmitry Medvedev during his first state of the nation address in early November. The announcement triggered speculation that the extension of the terms was a pretext for the return to office of his predecessor, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The Federation Council also approved amendments for the submission of annual government reports to parliament.
The State Duma (Parliament) will be authorised to consider governmental reports on its activity and demand answers to questions raised by lawmakers.