MOSCOW, May 13 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin will not appoint presidential candidate in 2008, but promises to support some candidates, Putin said in the Black Sea resort of Sochi on Saturday.

    "I will be carefully performing my duties until the last minute of my presidential term. But the final choice rests with the Russian citizens. It would be wrong to impose someone on them. The reaction could be just the opposite," Putin was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying.

    Putin noted he did not consider himself to have the right to say. "The presidential post is turned over, and you think yourselves what to do further."

    "In general, everybody values stability and is thinking about what will happen after 2008," he said. "But I believe I have the right to express my viewpoint about some or other candidates, and I'll do it."

    Putin said he had thought long ago about who would head the country after his second presidential term. "And I am thinking about it now," he added.

    Only Russian citizens can make the choice, he stressed.

    The president noted he had certain ideas about how to form a situation in the country during the period of time not to destabilize it and "not to frighten people and business."

    Putin was first elected in March 2000 as Russia's second president and secured a second term in 2004. Enditem