INCORPORATES YELTSIN FOLLOW The Russian President, Boris Yeltsin, has been taken to hospital for what the Kremlin has described as an acute bleeding stomach ulcer.

A Kremlin spokesman Dmitriy Yakushkin described his condition as stable and said there was no question of Mr Yeltsin ceding powers to the Prime Minister, Yevgeny Primakov.

He said that Mr Yeltsin was still in control of the country's nuclear arsenal.But he said that President Yeltsin would probably postpone his visit France, planned for later this month 28th January.

This was his first scheduled trip abroad since one to Central Asia in October was cut short by illness Mr Yeltsin has a history of poor health, undergoing major heart surgery just over two years ago.

The BBC Moscow correspondent says many in Russian politics believe Mr Yeltsin's health is now so bad that he should retire.

If he did - or if he died - the Prime Minister Primakov would take over for three months, until a presidential election was held.