"Is it possible there will be some changes to the Constitution in the future? I believe this question can be answered in the affirmative," Dmitry Medvedev said at a Kremlin conference dedicated to the 15th anniversary of the Russian Constitution.
"But fundamental rights and freedoms, and the presidential form of our state will never change, or at least not in the foreseeable future," he said. "The opposite threatens the existence of the state of the Russian Federation. Should anything like this happen, the consequences could be extremely bad."
During his November 5 state of the nation address, Medvedev proposed extending the current four-year parliamentary and presidential terms to five and six years, respectively. The announcement of the changes, which would apply to the next head of state and legislature, triggered speculation that they could be a pretext for the return to office of his predecessor, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
Russia's upper house of parliament approved the amendments extending the terms on November 26.
The constitutional amendments next have to be approved by at least two-thirds of regional legislatures. After that, the Federation Council will hold another session to endorse their decision. The amendments will come into force once they have been signed by the president and published in a government newspaper.
