MOSCOW Boris Yeltsin's spokesman on Thursday rejected accusations that the president is being overly influenced in political decision-making by his family. The accusations have circulated since Yeltsin appointed his younger daughter Tatyana Dyachenko, 37, to be his official image adviser last year. Yeltsin's communist foes have claimed that Dyachenko was manipulating the president and controlling access to Yeltsin. Russian media have also said that Yeltsin was being influenced through his family by controversial billionaire businessman Boris Berezovsky, who allegedly had close associations with the president's relatives, Dyachenko in particular.

Yeltsin ``has a circle of people to whose opinions he listens first of all,'' spokesman Sergei Yastrzhembsky told the Mayak Radio Station. ``But one thing the president has no shortage of is independence in making decisions,'' Yastrzhembsky said. ``Trying to influence the president is an absolutely hopeless undertaking.'' As the most recent example of Yeltsin's firmness in pushing through his decisions, Yastrzhembsky cited last month's showdown between Yeltsin and Parliament over the confirmation of Russia's new prime minister.

Premier Sergei Kiriyenko, 35, faced a tough battle over his confirmation with Parliament, which claimed that Kiriyenko was too young and inexperienced for the job. But lawmakers eventually caved in to Yeltsin, who refused to grant them any concessions in exchange for approving his candidate. (AP)