prokhorov

Mr. Putin, meanwhile, said he considered Mr. Prokhorov, who also owns the New Jersey Nets basketball team, as 'a strong competitor. '

Prokhorov's attack was edited out of the evening news and seemed to vanish, like a spark that had been swallowed by a swamp.

It thought Mr Prokhorov could be useful in neutralising the vocal liberal voters that constitute up to 15% of the total electorate.

Mr. Prokhorov said he and his supporters have already built the infrastructure to collect those signatures.

Mr. Prokhorov's previous political foray started out with the blessing of the Kremlin.

The unmarried Prokhorov attracted headlines in 2007 when French police detained him in the ski resort of Courchevel.

Despite the bravado, Mr. Prokhorov's latest ambitions seem at least partly in line with the Kremlin's plans.

Prokhorov election commitment to strengthen the cause of the right-wing party, into the Duma, became an important force in Russian politics.

Mr Prokhorov appeals to people who are fed up with the system but have too much to lose by taking to the streets.

"We have to act, work and think like a professional and responsible party of power, " Mr Prokhorov told the party convention.

Having survived a decade under conditions dictated by Putin, it is not clear whether Prokhorov will weather the current political turmoil.

The imposing Mr Prokhorov received airtime on state television and an audience with Mr Medvedev (see picture).

Four years ago, Prokhorov Zengyin suspected prostitution investigation in France and was briefly detained.

Faced with the Kremlin-orchestrated rebellion at last week's party congress, Prokhorov stepped down as party leader.

Mr Prokhorov, they said, must have been made an offer he could not refuse.

Last Wednesday, Prokhorov called a hasty press conference where he warned of the impending mutiny against him.

Blaming Mr Surkov for the attack, Mr Prokhorov angrily resigned a day later.

'My base is the middle class, ' Mr. Prokhorov told a news conference. 'But that's not just businessmen. '

Prokhorov and thus become the first Russian past 10 years into the political arena of the billionaires.

To run as president, Mr Prokhorov must obtain 2m signatures of support.

Prokhorov is currently president of Onexim Group, a private investment firm with roughly $25 billion in assets.

First, masked police raided a bank part-owned by Mr Prokhorov.

Yet the real threat comes not from Mr Prokhorov but from the Kremlin's nationalist games.

The Forbes Rich List ranked Prokhorov as the 24th richest person in the world.

Mr Prokhorov meant it to show that he is serious about power.

Prokhorov promised a title by 2016, but the way the Nets are going now, they'll be fortunate to win a playoff series over that time.

(A National Basketball Association spokesman in the U. S. said Mr. Prokhorov's political career won't affect his NBA holdings. )