Moscow’s Mayor Yuri Luzhkov has said that he has no plans to resign despite a series of media reports that he will step down after battles with authorities.
      
      When asked about his feelings after the first working day after the vacation in Austria, Mayor said very succinctly: “It has started.”
      
      Luzhkov was later seen smiling and joking at a conference in Moscow organised by UN Children's fund UNICEF, his first official engagement after his holiday.
      
      Under legislation adopted during Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's presidency, Moscow's mayor is appointed, not elected.
      
      Luzhkov's current term expires next June, but analysts say the Kremlin wants him out earlier to give a successor time to bring in votes for the ruling United Russia party in a parliamentary election later in 2011.
      
      Reuters