Is Russia approaching the end of an era?

You would think so, with the end of President Vladimir Putin's final term coming up next year. But the president may have found a loophole - a backdoor allowing him to keep dominating the halls of power by running for parliament and becoming prime minister.

Or by hand-choosing a presidential successor who will do his bidding.

Or picking someone who'll step down soon after stepping up, paving the way for Putin Part II.

Will any of these strategies work? And how do Russians feel about another helping of President Vlad?

To find out more about Putin's likely future, AP Deputy International Editor NICOLAS B. TATRO got on the phone with AP Moscow News Editor LYNN BERRY. Listen to their conversation in this asap podcast.

http://asap.ap.org/data/interactives/_news/podcast/1005asap_tatro.mp3