A visit to Austria by President Boris Yeltsin has been abruptly called off, less than a day before it was to have begun.

Kremlin officials say the Russian leader is suffering from nervous exhaustion and that his journey to Vienna, on Tuesday, was vetoed by his doctors.

The latest concern about Mr Yeltsin surfaced earlier this month, while he was visiting Central Asia.

Television footage showed him stumbling and uncertain and the visit was curtailed.

He was later said to have had a respiratory infection.

In Vienna, he was to have met the Austrian Chancellor, the current president of the European Union, and also IMF and World Bank officials.

Russia will now be represented by the Prime Minister, Yevgeny Primakov.