Chapter 4. President of the Russian Federation

Article 80.

1. The President of the Russian Federation shall be the head of state.
2. The President shall be the guarantor of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, and of human and civil rights and freedoms. In accordance with the procedure established by the Constitution of the
Russian Federation, he shall take measures to protect the sovereignty of the Russian Federation, its independence and state integrity, and ensure concerted functioning and interaction of all bodies of state power.
3. The President of the Russian Federation shall define the basic domestic and foreign policy guidelines of the state in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal laws.
4. The President of the Russian Federation as head of state shall represent the Russian Federation inside the country and in international relations.

Article 81.

1. The President of the Russian Federation shall be elected for a term of four years by the citizens of the Russian Federation on the basis of general, equal and direct vote by secret ballot.
2. A citizen of the Russian Federation not younger than 35, who has resided in the Russian Federation for not less than 10 years, may be elected President of the Russian Federation.
3. No one person shall hold the office of President of the Russian Federation for more than two terms in succession.
4. The procedure for electing the President of the Russian Federation shall be determined by federal law.

Article 82.

1. At his inauguration the President of the Russian Federation shall take the following oath to the people: "I vow, in the performance of my powers as the President of the Russian Federation to respect and protect the rights and freedoms of man and citizen, to observe and protect the Constitution of the Russian Federation, to protect the sovereignty and independence, security and integrity of the state and to serve the people faithfully."
2. The oath shall be taken in a solemn atmosphere in the presence of members of the Council of the Federation, deputies of the State Duma and judges of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation.

Article 83.

The President of the Russian Federation shall: The President of the Russian Federation shall:
a) appoint Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation subject to consent of the State Duma;
b) have the right to preside over meetings of the Government of the Russian Federation;
c) decide on resignation of the Government of the Russian Federation;
d) introduce to the State Duma a candidature for appointment to the office of the Chairman of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation; submit to the State Duma the proposal on relieving the Chairman of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation of his duties;
e) appoint and dismiss deputy chairmen of the Government of the Russian Federation and federal ministers as proposed by the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation;
f) submit to the Federation Council candidates for appointment to the office of judges of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation and the Supreme Arbitration Court of the Russian Federation as well as the candidate for Prosecutor- General of the Russian Federation; submit to the Federation Council the proposal on relieving the Prosecutor-General of the Russian Federation of his duties; appoint the judges of other federal courts.
g) form and head the Security Council of the Russian Federation, the status of which is determined by federal law;
h) endorse the military doctrine of the Russian Federation;
i) form the staff of the President of the Russian Federation;
j) appoint and dismiss plenipotentiary representatives of the President of the Russian Federation;
k) appoint and dismiss the Supreme Command of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation;
l) appoint and recall, after consultations with the resp ective committees or commissions of the Federal Assembly, diplomatic representatives of the Russian Federation to foreign states and international organizations.

Article 84.

The President of the Russian Federation shall:
a) call elections to the chambers of the State Duma in accordance with the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal law;
b) dissolve the State Duma in cases and under procedures envisaged by the Constitution of the Russian Federation;
c) call a referendum under procedures established by federal constitutional law;
d) introduce draft laws in the State Duma;
e) sign and publish federal laws;
f) present annual messages to the Federal Assembly on the situation in the country and on basic directions of the internal and external policies of the state.

Article 85.

1. The President of the Russian Federation may use dispute-settlement procedures to settle differences between organs of state power of the Russian Federation and organs of state power of the subjects of the Russian Federation, and also between organs of state power of the subjects of the Russian Federation. If no decision is agreed upon, he may turn the dispute over for review by the respective court of law.
2. The President of the Russian Federation shall have the right to suspend acts by organs of executive power of the subjects of the Russian Federation if such acts contravene the Constitution of the Russian Federation and federal laws, the international obligations of the Russian Federation, or violate human and civil rights and liberties, pending the resolution of the issue in appropriate court.

Article 86.

The President of the Russian Federation shall:
a) supervise the conduct of the foreign policy of the Russian Federation;
b) conduct negotiations and sign international treaties of the Russian Federation;
c) sign instruments of ratification;
d) accept credentials and instruments of recall of diplomatic representatives accredited with him.

Article 87.

1. The President of the Russian Federation shall be the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation.
2. In the event of aggression against the Russian Federation or an immediate threat thereof, the President of the Russian Federation shall introduce martial law on the territory of the Russian Federation or in areas thereof with immediate notification thereof of the Federation Council and the State Duma.

Article 88.

Under the circumstances and procedures envisaged by the Federal Constitutional Law, the President of the Russian Federation shall impose a state of emergency on the territory of the Russian Federation or in areas thereof with immediate notification of the Federation Council and the State Duma.

Article 89.

The President of the Russian Federation shall:
a) resolve issues of citizenship of the Russian Federation and of granting political asylum;
b) award state decorations of the Russian Federation, confer honorary titles of the Russian Federation and top military ranks and top specialized titles;
c) grant pardon.

Article 90.

1. The President of the Russian Federation shall issue decrees and executive orders.
2. The decrees and orders of the President of the Russian Federation shall be binding throughout the territory of the Russian Federation.
3. The decrees and orders of the President of the Russian Federation may not contravene the Constitution of the Russian Federation or federal laws.

Article 91.

The President of the Russian Federation shall possess immunity.

Article 92.

1. The President of the Russian Federation shall assume his powers from the time he shall be sworn in and terminate his exercise of such powers with the expiry of his tenure of office from the time the
newly-elected President of the Russian Federation shall have been sworn in.
2. The powers of the President of the Russian Federation shall be terminated in the event of his resignation or sustained inability due to health to discharge his powers or in the event of impeachment. In such cases new elections of the President of the Russian Federation shall be held not later than three months after the early termination of the President's powers.
3. In all cases when the President of the Russian Federation shall be unable to perform his duties such duties shall be temporarily performed by the chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation. The acting president of the Russian Federation shall have no right to dissolve the State Duma, call a referendum or make proposals on amendment or revision of the provisions of the Constitution of the Russian Federation.

Article 93.

1. The President of the Russian Federation may be impeached by the Federation Council only on the basis of charges put forward against him of high treason or some other grave crime, confirmed by a ruling of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation on the presence of indicia of crime in the President's actions and by a ruling of the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation confirming that the procedure of bringing charges has been observed.
2. The ruling of the State Duma on putting forward charges and the decision of the Federation Council on impeachment of the President shall be passed by the votes of two-thirds of the total number in each of the chambers at the initiative of at least one-third of the deputies of the State Duma and in the presence of the opinion of a special commission formed by the State Duma.
3. The decision of the Federation Council on impeaching the President of the Russian Federation shall be passed within three months of the charges being brought against the President by the State Duma. The charges against the President shall be considered to be rejected if the decision of the Federation Council shall not be passed.