Due to the ongoing disagreements, President Boris Yeltsin and orthodox church patriarch Alexy II are still weighing whether to attend the July 17 funeral for Nicholas II, who was executed some 80 years ago.

The ceremony will take place at St Petersburg's Peter and Paul Cathedral, the traditional burial site of the Romanovs, who ruled Russia for 300 years.

``I think the issue (of Yeltsin's presence) hinges on the patriarch's participation,'' said Viktor Aksyuchits, a government official in charge of preparation for the burial. He has earlier stated that both Yeltsin and Alexy were unlikely to take part, but said today the issue is still open. Nicholas II was executed by a Bolshevik firing squad on July 17, 1918, along with his family and servants in the Ural mountains cityof Yekaterinburg. Nine skeletons, severely burned with acid, were exhumed outside the city in 1991. After extensive genetic and other scientific tests conducted in Russia, Britain and the United States, a Russian government commission concluded this year that the bones belonged to the royal family.

However, some Russian monarchists and exiles say they still have some doubts. The orthodox church has also voiced its reservations, saying doubts about the bones' authenticity may sow discord among believers.

The Church has agreed to take part in the state funeral, but proposed that the remains should be ``interred temporarily in a symbolic grave monument'' as unknown victims of the Bolsheviks.

The government, meanwhile, says there is no doubt about the identity of the remains and each person should have his or her name on the gravestone.Alexy II has said that the remains' identification is essential since the church is considering Nicholas II and his family for sainthood.

``It would have been absolutelywrong to consider this burial temporary,'' snapped Vladimir Solovyov, the government's chief investigator.

``All facts confirm that these remains belong to the Czar and his family,'' he added.

In an apparent bid to assuage opponents, the government has decided to take samples of the bone's tissue and keep them aside after the burial for possible future tests.

``We will leave some micro-samples behind, so that serious scientists, if they have a sound reason for doubt, could continue the research,'' Solovyov said.