PRESIDENT Yeltsin, trying to boost his re election chances, has launched a major government reshuffle and Kremlin shake up which signals a new, more hawkish line that is starting to alarm the west.
The departure of his economic reform chief, foreign minister and Kremlin chief of staff in the last few days has removed three liberals and brought in at least two conservatives.
Mr Yeltsin, worried by the success of nationalists and communists in a parliamentary elections last month, is trying to toughen his image to defeat them in June's presidential race if he decides to seek a second term.
So far, Mr Yeltsin (64), has made no radical policy changes. But analysts say he could be ready to adopt a more authoritarian line, laying the ground for a shift in economic policy and preparing for a tough new military campaign in Chechnya.
"This reshuffle is a significant part of Yeltsin's election campaign. It is certainly a change in a conservative direction." Mr Viktor Kremenyuk, an analyst at the independent US and Canada Institute think tank, said.
Mr Yeltsin, who recently returned to work after his second heart attack, said the outcome would not force him to change policy. But the departures under pressure of the first Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Anatoly Chubais, and the Foreign Minister, Mr Andrei Kozyrev were huge concessions and with the removal of five other cabinet ministers signal a big shake up.
Mr Chubais was the last member of a government reform team gathered in November 1991, and he had launched the country's privatisation programme. He has not yet been replaced.
He had been the last liberal in the cabinet of the Prime Minister, Mr Viktor Chernomyrdin, since Mr Kozyrev quit on January 5th and was replaced by Mr Yevgeny Primakov, a former spy chief.
Fears of a swing to the right appeared to be confirmed when the Chief of Staff, Mr Sergei Filatov, the last true liberal in Mr Yeltsin's close team of aides, quit last week. He was replaced by the former Nationalities Minister, Mr Nikolai Yegorov, a harliner partly responsible for launching the Chechen war.
Five other changes have been made. The deputy Prime Minister, Mr Sergei Shakhrai, the Privatisation Minister, Mr Sergei Belyayev, and Minister without Portfolio, Mr Nikolai Travkin, took up seats in parliament. The transport and agriculture ministers were sacked.
Russia's lower house of parliament yesterday elected Mr Gennady Seleznyov (48), a communist and former editor of Pravda, to the post of chairman.