Alexander Lebed, the gruff Russian general who came third in the 1996
presidential election, is currently in the political wilderness, as governor of Siberia's Krasnoyarsk territory.
As a provincial governor, he is a member of Russia's upper house of parliament, the Federation Council, and is
not running for election to the lower house, the State Duma. However, Mr Lebed, aged 49, is still seen as a possible
contender for the presidency in June, or in 2004.
There may also be a role for him if or when Russia's military action
in Chechnya comes to an end, and political negotiations begin. He remains one of the few Russian leaders trusted by
the Chechens, after he negotiated an end to the previous conflict in 1996.