Russia's Medvedev proposes presidential term of 6 years

By Denis Dyomkin and Guy Faulconbridge

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian President Dmitry Medvedev proposed extending the presidential term by two years on Wednesday, a step analysts said could prepare the ground for Vladimir Putin to return to the Kremlin.

Medvedev, who took over from Putin as head of state in May, said the presidential term should go up from four to six years to allow more time to deal with massive challenges facing Russia and help the country move towards a stable democracy.

He also proposed increasing the powers of parliament over the executive and said the government would have explain its policies every year to parliament.

"(I propose) an increase of the constitutional terms of the president and State Duma (lower house of parliament) to 6 years and 5 years respectively," Medvedev said in his first state of the nation speech in the Kremlin.

The proposals do not apply to the present terms of the president and the State Duma, a senior Kremlin official was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies.

Analysts said the decision would give future heads of state -- including possibly former president Putin -- the chance to rule for two six year terms.

Putin endorsed Medvedev, 43, to replace him when he stepped down in May in line with constitutional term limits. At 56, he remains Russia's most popular politician and there is speculation he could return to the Kremlin after a Medvedev term.

"In Russia, listen less to the words and look more at the reality," said Olga Kryshtankovskya, a Russian political analysts who monitors the political elite.