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Putin wants parliament to quickly approve new anthem

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November 29, 2000 

MOSCOW-- (UNB/AP) - Russia is likely to celebrate the New Year to the familiar tune of the old Soviet national anthem - albeit with new lyrics - which would replace the current state hymn, a high official said Tuesday.

A Kremlin official, who asked not to be identified, said that President Vladimir Putin wanted parliament's lower house, or the State Duma, to quickly pass legislation restoring the old anthem.

The statement was in line with Russian media reports saying Putin would push for a return to the Soviet anthem.

Opinion polls show that many Russians dislike the country's post-Soviet anthem, which uses the music of the Patriotic Song by 19th-century composer Mikhail Glinka. No lyrics have yet been written to accompany Glinka's complex melody.

Russia's Communists, nostalgic for the Soviet days, have long tried to restore the music of the old, Soviet anthem. The proposals were blocked by ex-President Boris Yeltsin, who harshly opposed Soviet-era symbols, but pragmatic Putin reportedly backs the plan, although he has refrained from commenting publicly on the issue.

The former Communist-dominated Duma staunchly refused to pass legislation approving Russia's new tricolor flag and the double-headed eagle that replaced the Soviet red flag with its hammer and sickle symbol. Finally, Yeltsin was forced to introduce new state symbols by a presidential decree.

The current Duma, elected in December, is controlled by pro-government factions and might be inclined to accept Putin's notion.

The Duma planned to take a break next week so that lawmakers could visit their constituencies, but Putin on Monday asked lawmakers to stay in Moscow through Dec. 25. Though he did not specify the reason, parliamentary leaders decided Tuesday to heed Putin's request.

The lawmakers are expected both to restore the Soviet anthem and approve the post-Soviet flag and emblem before their winter break, the Kremlin official said.

Putin's advisory body, consisting of regional governors, had reviewed eight proposed anthems and suggested last week that the Duma choose between the current anthem and its Soviet-era predecessor.

Georgy Vilinbakhov, the head of presidential heraldic council, told Echo of Moscow radio on Tuesday that he saw no reason why Russia should replace the existing anthem.

"State symbols are changed only in times of change in the political course or revolutionary events," he said. "Changing state symbols in normal conditions is wrong for the state."

But some lawmakers said support for the Soviet anthem was overwhelming and its quick passage was virtually guaranteed.

Putin, a 16-year veteran of the KGB, told Russian interviewers earlier this year that he "can be considered a successful product of a Soviet man's patriotic upbringing."