In this story:

• Primakov asks for time
• Yeltsin: 'Hard for everyone'
• Primakov to appoint Communists?
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MOSCOW (CNN) -- Yevgeny Primakov, who was overwhelmingly confirmed on Friday as Russia's new prime minister, said the new government will need time to tackle Russia's economic crisis, and he appealed to all political factions for support.

Primakov, who has served as Russia's foreign minister and as a spy chief, was approved in the State Duma, the lower house of Russia's parliament, by a vote of 317 for and 63 against with 15 abstentions.

He has not spoken publicly about his likely economic policies, but President Boris Yeltsin said Friday he was sure Primakov would be able to pull Russia out of its economic hole.

The two met at the Kremlin on Friday prior to the Duma vote, but no details of the meeting were available.

Primakov asks for time

Yeltsin settled on Primakov to avoid a showdown with the Duma. It had twice rejected his previous candidate, Viktor Chernomyrdin, with opposition leaders vowing to vote him down again if a third and final vote were taken. That would have caused Yeltsin to dissolve parliament. The chamber is dominated by Yeltsin critics, primarily Communists.

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Before Friday's vote, Primakov told top lawmakers of the Duma they should give him a six-month grace period to work on reviving the economy before deciding if his government was succeeding.

Primakov told lawmakers that during a time of economic crisis the traditional 100-day grace period was not enough to implement reforms, Deputy Speaker Vladimir Ryzhkov told the Interfax news agency.

Yeltsin: 'Hard for everyone'

In a televised address to the nation, Yeltsin said a major crisis had been avoided by compromise and that Primakov had strong backing from all sides. He called for measures to stabilize prices, restore supplies to shops and prop up the banking system.

"I understand that it's hard for everyone, but one cannot give in to emotions... we'll have to draw lessons from the current crisis and now we'll have to work on overcoming it," Yeltsin said.

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Yeltsin, looking alert in his first appearance before the Russian people since nominating Primakov, said Russia had come to a "dangerous line."

In the latest sign of economic problems, Russia said it had missed part of an interest payment on its debt to Germany and to some other countries, although it said it was strictly observing other sovereign debt payments on due dates.

Primakov to appoint Communists?

Communist lawmakers said they expected some of their supporters to be named to posts in the new Cabinet, but Primakov said it was too early to speak of policies or appointments.

Communist deputy Yuri Maslyukov, a Soviet-era economic official, would likely be first deputy prime minister for economic affairs, Duma deputies said. Maslyukov is a technocrat who until recently was trade and industry minister.

The Duma, which wants a bigger say in appointing the Cabinet, has already said it wants guarantees from Yeltsin that he will not sack the government altogether for up to a year, so it may well support Primakov's request for six months.

The Duma can vote no-confidence in the government.

Correspondent Betsy Aaron, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

"Resurrection: The Struggle for a New Russia" by David Remnick "Russia: A History" by Gregory L. Freeze "The Wealth and Poverty of Nations: Why Some Are so Rich and Some so Poor" by David S. Landes "The Price of the past: Russia's Struggle with the Legacy of a Militarized Economy" by Clifford G. Gaddy "The Barefoot Shoemaker: Capitalizing on the New Russia" by Vladimir Kvint,Natalºdi8a Darºdi8alova Click here for additional reading on Russia (Federation)