The Russian Constitutional Court has ruled that President Yeltsin cannot run for a third term in office.

The court said the Russian constitution was clear that a president could be elected only twice.

Some of President Yeltsin's supporters had argued that his first term -- which began in nineteen-ninety-one -- should not be counted because the constitution only came into force in nineteen-ninety-three.

Some of the President's critics -- who asked for the ruling -- said the decision was a victory for democracy.

President Yeltsin is recuperating from exhaustion and high blood pressure at the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi.