ROSTOV-ON-DON, January 24 (RIA Novosti) - Chechnya's president, whose term will expire next year, said Wednesday he would not like to remain at his post for a second term, but that he would stay on if necessary.
"I have no desire to be the president of the Chechen Republic in 2008," Alu Alkhanov told journalists in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.
Under the current setup in the troubled North Caucasus republic, Prime Minister Ramzan Kadyrov has far more power than Alkhanov, and is expected by some to replace him as president later this year.
The incumbent regional president declined to comment on why he would be unwilling to serve another term.
However, he said: "If I am destined to be the republic's leader for a second time, I will."
