Shortly after the sacking Stepashin, the President also signed a decree announcing general elections on December 19, dispelling fears about the indefinite postponement of the Duma (Lower House) polls, the ITAR-TASS reported.

Putin's fate now depends upon the communist dominated Duma which has to approve his appointment as the new Prime Minister of the country.

Before dismissing Stepashin, Yeltsin elevated Putin to the rank of First Deputy Prime Minister as according to the Russian law only one of the Deputy Vice Premiers can be named as the caretaker Prime Minister.

Before the present assignment, Putin was Chief of Federal Security Service (FSB), Russia's heir of KGB.

The appointment of Putin is being seen as an attempt by the Kremlin to tightly control the poll process in thecountry as in December, Duma is to be elected and the President begins last six month of his term expiring in June 2000.

Media reports said that Yeltsin was unhappy over the successful visit of Stepashin to the United States during which he almost acted as an heir apparent of Russia.

The US political establishment had signalled its willingness to work with Stepashin as Yeltsin's successor, the media reports said.

Stepashin is the fourth Prime Minister to be sacked in 18-months. He was appointed in March this year after the then Premier Viktor Chernomyrdin was sacked by Kremlin.

Chernomyrdin's sacking was also on the similar lines as Kremlin, after his sacking had said that the Premier ``had taken the liberty to act like a President''.