Putin Represents an Imperial Course for Russia

Yavlinsky, Gregory A., Demokratizatsiya

A leading democratic figure in Russia, Grigory A. Yavlinsky is the cofounder and chairman of Yabloko, a liberal party. Yavlinsky is an economist who became widely known in 1990 when he co-authored the radical "500 Days" economic program with Stanislav Shatalin that was eventually rejected by Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev. He was also the co-author of a proposal for large-scale Western assistance to the USSR in exchange for specific reforms, known as the "Grand Bargain," with Graham Allison of Harvard University. Yavlinsky went on to become an architect of relatively successful economic reforms in the province of Nizhny-Novgorod, working closely with governor Boris Nemtsov, who currently leads the other main liberal party, the Union of Right Forces (SPS). Yavlinsky has been a presidential candidate twice and a longtime critic of the privatization project carried out under Boris Yeltsin and its consequences. This interview was conducted on May 19, 2003, at the Yabloko office of the State Duma in Moscow by Demokratizatsiya founder Fredo Arias-King.

Demokratizatsiya: Now that Yeltsin is gone, do you think the unity of the democratic forces is more doable, say cooperation between the Union of Right Forces, Yabloko, and other liberal forces?

Yavlinsky: What do you mean by "democratic forces"?

Demokratizatsiya: Usually they associate the democratic forces with those parties that are not the Communists, not the party of power, not xenophobes or ... but you are right, maybe it's a …

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Publication information: Article title: Putin Represents an Imperial Course for Russia. Contributors: Yavlinsky, Gregory A. - Author. Journal title: Demokratizatsiya. Volume: 12. Issue: 1 Publication date: Winter 2004. Page number: 9+. © 1998 Heldref Publications. COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group.

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