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Building A New Russia
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19986 |
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Section : |
CURRENT ISSUES
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| Issue
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8 / 1992 |
3,036 Words |
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Tim Graham is director of media analysis at the Media Research
Center, a press-watch institute based in Alexandria, Virginia. |
Russia is going through a particularly turbulent period with President Boris Yeltsin under attack from the Left and the Right as he attempts to lead his country into the uncharted territory (for Russia) of political and economic freedom. For an insider's view, THE WORLD & I invited Yuri Shchekochikhin to participate in a special forum on the state of Russian politics. Shchekochikhin is senior political commentator for the Literaturnaya Gazeta in Moscow and a member of the Russian parliament. Other forum participants were Prof. Carl Linden of George Washington University, John Lenczowski of the Institute of World Politics, Michael Waller of the American Security Council Foundation, and Michael Marshall of THE WORLD & I. Lee Edwards, senior editor for Current Issues of THE WORLD & I, served as forum moderator. Alex Sulla was Shchekochikhin's interpreter.
--The Editor
THE WORLD & I: There is a perception in the United States now that things in Russia are very unstable, very uncertain. What is the state of Russian politics generally?
Yuri Shchekochikhin: You can discuss the present situation in Russia for one week, and during this week you can expect anything--the name of Moscow will be changed, or someone will declare war. But the most important thing in my view is that the winter that everyone was afraid of has passed. Everyone was afraid that the rapid rise in prices would leave people starving in the streets, and this did not happen. Everybody thought that the Russian government would collapse, and this too did not happen.
Of course a great political struggle is going on, but it has switched from the streets to the upper echelons of power. New political blocs are being formed all the time. We need to look ahead, though, to consider what may happen this coming fall. If we look at the economic situation, we will understand that people were able to maintain their livelihood this past winter by utilizing their reserves. But because the land has not yet been given to the peasants, nobody really knows what will be cultivated and collected for next winter.
In my opinion, the biggest danger is the situation with the military-industrial complex. As of the first of July, 300 military plants will cease to operate. Nearly 15 million workers and their families will be out of work, left without income. How will they live?
Gorbachev did not
...
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