Putin will be long-serving, powerful premier

By Michael Stott

MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday he intended to become a powerful and long-serving prime minister after leaving the Kremlin but rejected suggestions he would dictate orders to his likely successor.

Putin, giving his last annual news conference before his second term ends in May, said he fully trusted the Kremlin's candidate for president, First Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, and would have no problems working with him.

Medvedev enjoys blanket coverage on state-controlled media and is widely expected to win a big poll victory next month.

"Dmitry Anatolyevich (Medvedev) and I have worked together for 15 years and I would never have deigned to support a candidate for president if he needed coddling and advice on how to behave," Putin told hundreds of reporters at the Kremlin in a marathon event lasting a record 4 hours and 40 minutes.

Political analysts have questioned how Medvedev would occupy Russia's all-powerful presidency and work effectively with his former boss as a subordinate.

Putin will become prime minister because his United Russia party won a huge parliamentary majority in elections on Dec. 2 and controls the lower house of parliament.

Russia's constitution assigns the prime minister a largely economic role, with all key security and power ministries reporting directly to the president.

Putin, 55, said he and Medvedev would "divide our responsibilities and I can assure you that there will be no problem here".