Portable Planet

Russians will bid a final farewell Wednesday to their first democratically-elected president, Boris Yeltsin, who is to be buried on the grounds of Moscow’s Novodevichy convent. Before the private, afternoon burial, a host of current and former world leaders will attend a memorial ceremony at Christ the Savior Cathedral.

Three Russian Orthodox priests will officiate at Wednesday’s ceremony which, according to custom, takes place three days after Mr. Yeltsin died of heart failure at 76.

Memorial services are to be held inside the ornate, golden-domed Christ the Savior Cathedral, which was rebuilt during Yeltsin’s time in office, after having been blown up by Soviet leader Josef Stalin.

President Vladimir Putin will attend the memorial service on this, a national day of morning in Russia. Others expected to attend include former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, and former American presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

Following the ceremonies, Yeltsin’s coffin will be transported to the 16th Century convent by a black limousine bearing the Russian flag — a vehicle usually reserved to transport his successor, President Putin.

At his family’s request, Yeltsin will be laid to rest alongside some of Russia’s major cultural figures, rather than political or military brass.

Source: VOA