December 18, 1997   
This Date's Issues: 1440  •1441  1442

Johnson's Russia List
#1441
18 December 1997
davidjohnson@erols.com

[Note from David Johnson:
1. Interfax: Nemtsov: Russia Needs Strong Ruling Hand.
(DJ: This item follows on to Nemtsov's earlier strong
praise of monarchy.)
2. Fred Weir on Christmas in Moscow.
3. Toronto Star: Olivia Ward, Russia faces brain drain as 
scientists quit. Poor pay, no grants have researchers heading West 
for jobs.
4. Toronto Sun: Matthew Fisher, Red Square turns blue.
5. RIA Novosti: Marina Shakina, THE YEAR OF POLITICAL STABILITY.
For the first time in the past seven years, no political shocks
were felt in Russia.
6. Segodnya: RUSSIA IS 45TH IN THE WORLD. (GNP).
7. Joseph Dresen: Kennan Institute internship announcement.
8. Dev Murarka: Lebed.
9. Robert Cutler: On Straus on Hough (JRL-1440).
10. Rossiyskiye Vesti: Opinion Poll on Moscow Living Standard.
11. AP: Yeltsin To Return To Work Friday.
12. Interfax: Russian Speaker Angered By Clinton's Threat Over Start-2.
13. Jamestown Foundation Monitor: CHERNOMYRDIN REVERSES DECISION OF CHUBAIS,
DOUBT CAST ON MOSCOW CITY DUMA ELECTIONS, ZHIRINOVSKY THREATENS BOYCOTT,
and LEBED/YAVLINSKY ELECTORAL BLOC EMERGES IN NOVOSIBIRSK. 
14. Reuters: PM: Army's Diversion of Wages "Disgraceful."] 

*********

#1
Nemtsov: Russia Needs Strong Ruling Hand

MOSCOW, Dec 18 (Interfax) - Russian First Deputy Prime Minister *Boris
Nemtsov* said in an interview published Thursday the country needed a
strong system of power. 
"Otherwise, there will be anarchy and destruction," Nemtsov told the
newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets. 
"The moment the president pays less attention to the economy, all the
decisions disappear immediately without a trace," he said. President Boris
Yeltsin's speech to the Duma before the vote on the draft 1998 federal
budget was "a flawless political step, which enhanced economic
stabilization, including the financial markets," he said. 
"Many investors trying to take money out of Russia halted" after this
step, he said. 
Regarding the widely publicized scandal over government officials
accepting exorbitant fees, Nemtsov said, "the incident is not so fatal as
to make one throw up their hands and stop working." Instead, the Cabinet
ministers must "concentrate on resolving the economic and social problems,
notably taxation and pension reforms, directed social benefits and creation
of economic rules which are clear for everybody," he said. 
The fact that the chief executive of Gazprom, Rem Vyakhirev, did not
come to sign an agreement on management of the government's share package
in the company is "an unfortunate misunderstanding and a scandalous action." 
"It is not Nemtsov's or Chernomyrdin's whim, but a presidential decree
which Gazprom's directorship does not want to carry out for obvious
reasons," he said. 
The previous trust accord "states that the trust manager has the option,
i.e. the right to buy out a 30% stake in the company at par value. Now the
state can cancel the trust agreement via court and return the shares to the
State Property Ministry, bidding Vyakhirev farewell," he said. 

********

#2
From: fweir.ncade@rex.iasnet.ru
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 20:55:58 (MSK)
For the Hindustan Times
From: Fred Weir in Moscow

MOSCOW (HT) -- It kinda looks like Christmas, even where
you might least expect it to.
Russia, which had no Christmases at all during 70 years
of Communist rule, is suddenly awash in imported, heavily
televised Christmas spirit. The trouble is, much of it looks
unfamiliar to Russians.
``During Soviet times we gave gifts and celebrated at New
Years,'' says Alexander Yendovim, public relations director for
Maxima, one of Russia's largest advertising agencies.
``Now there is a mighty commercial wind blowing in 
Western-style Christmas with all of its symbols and fanfare. I
can't blame people for being a bit disoriented by it all.''
The giant GUM department store, which faces a red
star-topped Kremlin across Red Square, is decked out with lights,
tinsel and glittering Christmas trees. Stylized Santa Clauses
frolic above the store's central fountain, and take flight in
reindeer-driven sleighs.
Many of GUM's shops are running special Christmas sales,
and upstairs a travel agency is offering December ``Christmas
getaways''.
Russian TV has filled its December 25th schedule with
American Christmas-theme movies.
But in pre-communist days Orthodox believers celebrated
Christ's birthday according to the old calendar, on January 7.
And Santa Claus is not even remotely a Russian character.
Communist leaders, seeking to impose an alternative
tradition around the secular holiday of New Years, created a
Santa-like figure for Soviet kiddies called Ded Moroz
(Grandfather Frost), a hard-drinking, white-bearded figure in
red and blue flowing robes.
``Anyone can tell the difference,'' says Pavel Gunayev,
an 11-year old shopping with his mother.
``Santa is fat and wears a big black belt with pants. Ded
Moroz is tall and his coat goes down to his feet.''
The Soviet Santa visited children's homes on New Year's
eve accompanied by his helper Snegurichka (Snow Maiden), a nubile
young woman who would help distribute gifts and lend a shoulder
when Ded Moroz was too drunk to stand.
``Of course there is some similarity between our seasonal
traditions and the Western ones,'' says Mr. Yendovim. ``But
commercialism is causing everything to become homogenized. Ded
Moroz is being eclipsed by a universal image of Santa Claus.''
Many Russians say they like the bright lights,
decorations and Christmas sales -- which are new in their lives
-- and don't care much about the identity of the bearded guy in
red. 
``People buy a lot during this season, and it's great
that we have plenty to sell them these days,'' says Natasha
Martinenko, 30, manager of a small gift shop in GUM.
``I remember how dull and empty this place was in Soviet
times. We should just be glad for commercialism, or whatever you
want to call it, and stop looking for things to complain about.''
But some disagree.
Gennady Lazutkin is a 27-year old law student who dresses
up as Ded Moroz and rents himself out for New Years parties and
promotions. He says there are serious cultural issues between
himself and the Santa Claus look-alikes who are proliferating in
Moscow.
``Ded Moroz drinks vodka like a man,'' he says with a wan
smile. ``Santa drinks tea like an old lady.
``Besides, who wants to go to parties with elves? What
kind of message does that send to children? When I show up with
Snegurichka, everything is as it should be.''
Mr. Lazutkin says that most families still prefer to have
Ded Moroz come and entertain their children during New Years, but
that Santa is the symbol of choice for the advertising industry.
``For commercial events, they always specify that it must
be Santa Claus. They see Ded Moroz as a has-been, and a bad
influence on children,'' he says. 

*******

#3
Toronto Star
18 December 1997
[for personal use only]
Russia faces brain drain as scientists quit 
Poor pay, no grants have researchers heading West for jobs 
By Olivia Ward 
Toronto Star European Bureau 

MOSCOW - For months biological scientist Vladimir Vasilenko has been
working on an intriguing proposition that could save lives in the world's
polluted inner cities.
``It's already known that trees help to clean the air,'' says the
bespectacled 34-year-old researcher. ``But it seems that different kinds of
trees remove different amounts of pollutants.
``If we find out what they are, and how they adapt to various
environments, we might be able to improve our quality of life and lessen
global warming.''
Sounds like a no-fail idea. But Vasilenko, like most other bright young
scientists in Russia today, hasn't a hope of carrying his project through
to the finish. It is simply too expensive, he says. The government funds
that supported scientific research have long since dried up.
So he, like many others in laboratories all over the country, is
planning to quit Russia.
``I'm expecting to emigrate to Canada,'' he says. ``I'm a research
scientist and 90 per cent of us cannot do anything here in Russia. For us,
Canada is a land of opportunity.''
As he spoke, a couple of dozen scientists gathered on a brutally cold
day in front of the Russian state Duma, waving placards protesting against
three months without pay.
They weren't alone. Prestigious institutes all over Moscow are
experiencing the same problems. Some haven't been paid for longer periods,
others get only a fraction of their salaries. And the ones who are lucky
enough to get full wages can't make ends meet.
``I get $100 a month,'' says Yevgeny Stepanov. ``But I'm quite senior
here. Others get only $50 a month.''
Stepanov, one of Vasilenko's colleagues at the formerly top-secret
General Physics Institute, is a physicist who specializes in laser
spectroscopy (interaction between matter and radiation).
He presides over a mad scientist's dream of hand-built machines, their
coils, tubes and wires jutting out in all directions. Some are kept going
on a shoestring budget. Others sit idle because their projects have been
abandoned.
``Pure science is pretty well impossible now,'' he says. ``We have to
think up projects that will sell. But that's not easy.''
There's little support from investors for Russian projects these days.
The big money gravitates to high-yield state treasury bills and few
foreigners or new rich local businessmen want to wait for the rewards of
research and development.
Stepanov's latest project could help to diagnose stomach and intestinal
diseases using breath samples, avoiding invasive and sometimes risky x-rays
and allow diagnosis over long distances by transporting samples to medical
centres.
The number of new scientific inventions is 10 times less than it was a
decade ago 
``It should be ready for hospital use in a few months,'' he said. ``But
I don't know if we'll be able to make it pay.''
Russia's health-care system is also on starvation rations and even badly
needed technology is often unaffordable.
So Stepanov, too, would like to leave Russia, one of thousands who are
joining the brain drain to the West.
``When they don't support science at home they support it in foreign
countries,'' screamed a recent headline in the popular Argumenti i Fakty
newspaper, lamenting that times have changed from the days when every
fourth scientist in the world was a Soviet citizen.
``In the past 10 years the number (of scientists) shrank from 3.4
million to 1.3 million,'' the newspaper said.
A recent study by the Institute of the Population said nine out of 10
scientists end up abandoning their unpaid jobs.
Surprisingly, it found less than 8 per cent of these highly educated
people in business and finance. Many end up as construction workers or
traders. 
Another man introduces himself as a former physicist, hawks dubious
timeshare real estate deals in downtown Moscow. ``It's a great job,'' he
laughs sarcastically. ``You get to meet an interesting catalogue of crooks.''
Others, younger and more risk-taking, have tried their hand at producing
high-priced designer drugs, sometimes getting caught. 
And a handful have tried selling their skills as military technologists
to countries feared by the West.
``The brain drain costs the country $50 billion to $60 billion (U.S.)
annually,'' the Institute of the Population says. ``But it is only 10 per
cent of the real damage to science.''
The number of new scientific inventions is 10 times less than it was 10
years ago and scientific financing has decreased 12 times in the past decade.
That's no news to Vasilenko, who is packing his bags for a new life in
Canada any time now. He hasn't a firm job offer, but is confident his skill
and ingenuity will see him through.
With a 17-month-old son and a landscape architect wife, also on
starvation wages, he has little choice.
If the pollution project can't find support, he hopes another project in
fast germination of seeds might interest Canadian companies or agricultural
institutes.
``I've tried everything here and there's nothing more I can do,'' he
says, pushing back an unruly lock of hair. ``I absolutely must continue my
scientific research. It's my life.''

********

#4
Toronto Sun
18 December 1997
[for personal use only]
Red Square turns blue
By MATTHEW FISHER (74511.357@CompuServe.com)
Sun's Columnist at Large

 MOSCOW - Boris Yeltsin's alleged cold is now so serious he won't be back
to work for another three weeks. 
  Another IMF bailout has temporarily saved the decrepit Russian economy -
again. 
  A helicopter exploded in northern Siberia after a transport plane landed
on it on a runway, killing 12 people including a woman in labor. 
  Viktor Tikhinov's once omnipotent Red Army hockey team has been
relegated to the second division. 
  But all Muscovites talked about this week was the weather. 
  As the sun finally came up at 9 on Tuesday morning the thermometer on my
balcony dipped to -31oC - the coldest Dec. 16 in 115 years. This so scared
the locals that the usual bumper-to-bumper one-hour drive from my flat at
the far end of Leninski Prospect to Red Square took only 15 minutes. Almost
everyone except me had had the good sense to stay home. 
  My first brush with Russia in winter was in 1978 when I rode the
Trans-Siberian railway from the Pacific to European Russia in late
November. For the entire 10 days of that odyssey, which brought me through
Khabarovsk, Irkutsk, Novosibirsk and Perm, it was much colder than it was
in Moscow this week. A few freight trains were still steam-powered in
Siberia at the time, sending up spectacular white plumes that could be seen
for miles across a landscape that seemed frozen in time. 
  As I discovered during station stops on that trip, Russian males can be
very macho about winter. No matter how cold it got, no self-respecting
Siberian would ever turn down the flaps on his fur hat to cover his ears.
Even the fishermen sitting patiently on stools for hours on the ice on the
windy Amur River followed this idiotic practice. 
  I was reminded of this when I saw a group of Inuit lads walking in
sneakers and wearing open windbreakers one December in the 24-hour darkness
of -42oC Pangnirtung. For reasons known only to themselves, the teenagers
on Baffin Island, like the men in Siberia and, indeed, in European Russia,
do not like to be seen to be giving in to the cold. 
  I was in Baker Lake in the Central Canadian Arctic the night an Inuk
woman's frozen corpse was found by a Mountie with her arms positioned as if
she was trying to keep her kidneys warm. The woman had gone out to buy some
food for her kids when she became lost in a ferocious whiteout. She died
only a couple of metres from her home. 
  Winter in Moscow can be deadly, too. Five homeless derelicts, known here
as bomzhi, froze to death on the streets of the capital this week. Such
tragedies are a major scandal and a cause for much soul-searching when they
occur from time to time in Canada. However, the local administration here
has a much different take on the problem, which involves as many as 250,000
homeless. 
  "What can we do about it? Why should we do anything?" Reuters quoted a
spokesman for Mayor Yuri Luzhkov as saying this week about the problems of
the homeless in winter. "They should live in houses, not on the street." 
  For those who are broke in Moscow, and lots of people are these days
despite the immense wealth that is often flaunted here, getting shelter
from the cold is almost impossible. As a local newspaper reported this
week, bomzhi who ride the subway all day to stay warm are rousted when the
system closes at around midnight and not allowed in again until about 5 in
the morning. 
  The city runs a few shelters, but to gain access prospective residents
must provide Moscow residency papers and a medical certificate saying they
don't have lice or any contagious diseases. Few homeless can provide
either, so they drive their fellow Muscovites crazy by camping out in
partially heated stairwells in scores of buildings in the city centre. 
  But Moscow's permanent underclass, which seems to be growing rapidly,
got a small break yesterday. It was only -10oC, with even warmer weather
forecast for the weekend. 
  
********

#5
RIA Novosti
18 December 1997
THE YEAR OF POLITICAL STABILITY
For the first time in the past seven years, no political 
shocks were felt in Russia
By Marina SHAKINA, RIA Novosti political observer

The past year can justly be called the year of political
stability. In Russia there were no coup attempts (as in 1991),
no heated battles for power between the president and
parliament (as in 1992), no armed skirmishes between the
branches of power (as in 1993), no bloody conflicts were
started (as in Chechnya in 1994) and there were neither State
Duma (as in 1995) or presidential elections (as in 1996).
Despite his temporary indisposition, the activities of the
president in 1997 were of an active and, to a certain extent,
innovative character. In essence, Boris Yeltsin tried on a new
political role. Although the president continued to patronize
and guide the government, he distanced himself somewhat from
the concrete affairs of the executive branch (leaving Viktor
Chernomyrdin's Cabinet in a Mexican standoff with the State
Duma) and himself preferred to play the role of arbitrator and
coordinator of political life in the country.
The president came forward as a generator of ideas and an
author of promising initiatives--such as, say, the fight with
corruption in state structures or the introduction of "young
reformers" such as Nizhny Novgorod Governor Boris Nemtsov and
Samara Mayor Oleg Sysuyev to the government. With Boris
Yeltsin's direct participation, new methods of problem-solving
and coordination of political interests like the regular "group
of four" meetings (between the president, the prime minister
and the heads of the two chambers of parliament) and "round
table" talks between representatives of different political
forces (including 25 representatives from each branch of power
on all levels) were devised.
In 1997 the relations between the executive branch and the
deputies fell into a calm, regular routine. The natural
opposition among the various branches of power did not take on
any radical forms, and was characterized by the striving of
both sides to find compromises. As a result, there was no
end-of-the-year dismissal of the government (despite the fact
that part of the deputies repeatedly called for a vote of no
confidence), nor was the State Duma disbanded (which it might
well have deserved after all of the red tape involved in
passing the 1998 budget).
If we are to talk about the failures of the government in
1997, then we must mention that "thanks" to the Duma's
stubbornness we were not able to get a new Tax Code
adopted--something which would have reduced the tax burden on
enterprises significantly. We also failed to get the housing
and utilities reform rolling at full speed or to remove the
encumbrance which its delay is placing on the federal budget. 
In addition, a series of bills on the regulation of social
benefits, which would allow us to save a lot of state money,
got stuck in the Duma and the pension reform did not get off
the ground.
However, there is also a list of government achievements. 
We managed to get the huge debt on taxes built up by "Gasprom"
paid off and to conduct several highly-profitable auctions of
state property, both of which made it possible for us to
liquidate the budget's wage arrears. The setting up of
contacts with international financial institutions in 1997 must
also be considered a plus. Other events worth mentioning here
are Russia's introduction to the Paris Club of creditors, the
restructuring of Russia's debts to the countries of the London
Club, and the country's reaching of a mutual understanding with
the IMF.
A new phenomenon appeared in Russian political life in
1997--pressure from financial groups on the state powers and
their ever-growing desire to influence political decisions. 
The second half of the year was accompanied by conflicts
between the government and the owners of financial capital who
were fighting for control over the state-owned blocks of shares
in successful companies. In the end, part of the team of
reformers in the government, who fell out of favor with several
banking structures, became the victims of the "book scandal"
(when the huge advance payments received by some government
officials for an unfinished book on privatization were made
public).
The scandal dealt a major blow to the government's
prestige, but there was another side to the story as well. 
Regardless of all of these adversities, the president and the
government sent a clear signal that the Russian authorities
would never become mere puppets for the business magnates. 
This can be seen as the beginning of a very good tradition.
As for the socio-political situation in the country, it is
being characterized by a lull and the fall of public interest
in the activities of various political parties and the election
process itself. This is mainly due to the fact that no bright
new political forces or charismatic political leaders emerged
during the course of the year. As before, the communists,
democrats, conservative reformers from the "Our Home is Russia"
movement and Zhirinovsky's "liberal democrats" fought amongst
themselves for seats in the regional assemblies.
Judging by the results, the political leanings of the
Russians are going through a sort of evolution today. More and
more often it is not the candidates from political parties who
are winning the elections, but independent candidates,
businessmen and economic managers. And this shows that the
mercury is falling in the ideological battle in society and
that political passions are starting to fade among Russian
citizens. 

*******

#6
Segodnya
18 December 1997
Interfax
RUSSIA IS 45TH IN THE WORLD

"In the past five years, Russia's gross domestic product,
or GDP, has dropped by nearly 40%," Alexander Ageyenkov, a
deputy to the Security Council secretary, told the national
conference Economic Security and State Strategy yesterday. 
He said that Russia is behind first ten countries of the
world in this respect, and 45th in the world in terms of per
capita GDP. 
The conferees noted that this situation is abnormal and
spoke in favour of seeking new and more efficient ways of
developing the Russian economy. 
They pointed out that pooling the efforts of the executive
and legislative authorities, enterprises, the business
community and the banking system is a must in the current
situation.

*******

#7
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 11:32:21 -0500
From: Joseph Dresen <jdresen@erols.com>
Organization: Kennan Institute
Subject: Internship announcement

Dear David:

Please post the following announcement for internship opportunities at 
the Kennan Institute. We have a couple of openings for early January, 
and more for April and the Summer.

Thanks!
========

BE A RESEARCH ASSISTANT AT THE KENNAN INSTITUTE
FOR ADVANCED RUSSIAN STUDIES!!!

The Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies of the Wilson Center 
in Washington, DC, offers paid Research Assistantships throughout the 
year for undergraduate, graduate students and prospective graduate 
students who are either U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Each 
research assistant works with a Fellow or Research Scholar in residence 
at the Institute over a period of three to nine months. Applicants must 
have a good command of the Russian language, good organizational skills, 
and be able to conduct independent research.

A Research Assistantship at the Kennan Institute complements any 
student's academic interest in Russian or Soviet Studies. As a research 
assistant, you will:

· Work closely with a prominent scholar in the field.

· Attend discussions and seminars sponsored by the Institute.

· Build on research skills you've acquired in college.

· Gain the privilege to use the Kennan Institute Library, which houses 
approximately 7,500 volumes and more than fifty Russian journals and 
newspapers. 

· Have the opportunity to use your Russian language skills.

· Have a flexible schedule of 15 hours per week.

If you are interested in continuing in Russian Studies, a research 
assistantship at the Kennan Institute will provide practical experience 
in the field while helping you establish contacts with academics and 
policy makers that may prove useful for achieving future career 
objectives.

To apply, send a resume and cover letter to:

Research Assistantships
Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies
370 L'Enfant Promenade, SW; Suite 704
Washington, DC 20024

The Woodrow Wilson Center is an Equal Opportunity Employer and as such 
follows EOE guidelines in the selection of its interns and research 
assistants.

For more information, please call (202) 287-3400.

Joseph Dresen
Program Assistant
Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies
Tel: 202-287-3400; Fax: 202-287-3772
http://wwics.si.edu/PROGRAMS/REGION/KENNAN/KENNAN.HTM
jdresen@erols.com jdresen@sivm.si.edu

********

#8
From: "Dev Murarka" <devmur@centro.ru>
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 12:15:25 MSK
Subject: Lebed

The questions raised by Mr. Raskin (JRL1439):

1. The preparations for the assault on Chechnya started long before the
Security Council took the final decision to go ahead. At that time Filatov
was the head of President's administration which was involved in these
preparations. It has come out in television discussions and even in
newspapers and periodicals that Filatov was in favour of a hard line on
Chechnya. Who did or did not belong to the so-called party of war is a moot
question and its membership cannot be established with precise accuracy. In
a political sense it is the President's administration which carries the
responsibility for what happened. The Security Council approved merely it.

2. Mr. Raskin is somewhat confused about the sequence in 1996. Lebed gained
the high percentage of votes before rpt before he was co-opted by Yeltsin to
the Security Council and before rpt before he made peace in Chechnya in
spite of Yeltsin's obstructive tactics. In this context it is worth
recalling that Chancellor Helmut Kohl personally brought his considerable
weight to bear upon Yeltsin to allow Lebed to make peace. Afterwards, Lebed
lost support both because he had joined Yeltsin and because the
nationalists-chauvinists considered the agreement a betrayal of Russian
national interests. This sentiment against him is still strong with some
sections of the voters, not only among communists.
To this day the paradox of the Chechnya question remains that while
most people remain against the war there, a very large number of them resent
even more the concessions made. It hurts imperial-national pride. This pain
should be viewed with some understanding. But not assuaged with the
meaningless assertions still being made that Chechnya is an inalienable part
of Russia and which ensure that the wound of the war will continue to fester
and a long term stable solution avoided.
If Mr. Raskin means public opinion polls after the Chechnya agreement,
they were indeed high in his favour but only for some time and agreement has
not remained so popular generally.
Yes, Lebed has a military background. So had Eisenhower and De Gaulle.
As for potentiality, not all potential angels have turned out to be so and
not all potential devils have proved to be so. Yes, he does not have a
detailed programme or ideology prescribing solutions. However, existence and
proclamation of such programmes in themselves do not guarantee welfare. Just
look at what the "democrats" have done to the country.
Question marks over Lebed will remain till answers are evident. However
the point I endeavoured to convey in my comment was that he should not be
abused, tried and condemned in advance without evidence and proof. His
record so far is by and large a positive one.

*******

#9
From: "Robert M. Cutler" <rmc@alum.mit.edu>
Date: Thu, 18 Dec 1997 02:58:15 +0000
Subject: On Straus on Hough (JRL-1440)

Ira Straus writes, apropos of viewing Russia as a part of "Judeo-
Christian civilization" (Hough's phrase):
> The billion people from "V to V" ["Vancouver to Vladivostok"], while 
> numerically equivalent to a billion > anywhere else (India, China), 
> are geopolitically more powerful than all the other 4. something 
> billion combined. And will remain in this relatively secure position 
> well into the next century, or beyond it -- unless they're so stupid 
> as to quarrel with one another, seek and build up allies around the
> world against one another, and spread their latest military equipment
> and technologies around the world. 
> Unfortunately, such stupidity we've seen throughout the 20th century, and
> we're seeing some of it now again before our eyes. That makes it all the
> more important to re-iterate the basic point Hough makes about; 

Isn't it blindly Eurocentric (nothing wrong normatively with Eurocentrism, 
we just shouldn't let it create blindspots) if we do not recognize that
elements 
of Russian history, demography, geography, and politics militate against 
categorizing Russia as a member (only!) of "European" culture. Twentieth-
century Turkey is another example that demonstrates the point even as
vividly. 

> go beyond making the point to actually organizing the "V to V" area in a
> visible form, one that provides some significant reserves of institutional
> capabilities, mutual identification, joint identity, joint initiative,
> self-sustenance, and self-discipline. In that case, we'll have not just
> another super-power, but a super-super-power (in a phrase of Rick Wicks).
> One small correction. Actually Baker left space for inclusion of Japan
and
> other non-European OECD countries alongside all the OSCE countries in his
> vision of the new Atlanticism "from V to V". Only the predominant, not the
> exclusive, foundation was to be upon the European heritage -- call it
> Judeo-Christian if one likes, to satisfy the proponents of deep
> civilizational historical heritage as the criterion for membership; but the
> Renaissance and Enlightenment heritage is probably more important, and has
> the virtue of being a heritage that can with some effort (and luck and
> skill) be imported not just inherited. 

I know Ira didn't mean to, but this glosses over the fact that "V to V"
includes 
what people nowadays refer to as "OSCE Europe", viz., it includes the new 
Caucasus and Central Asian states. That in turn puts a slightly more complex 
spin on things, insofar as one chooses to adopt a "civilizational" approach. 
Look at Kazakhstan for another example of cultural polyvalence. (Disclaimer: 
the use of the phrase "cultural polyvalence" is neither an adoption nor an 
endorsement of any philosophical movement that postdates Claude Levi-Strauss. 
And -- preemptive strike -- things are more complicated in Kazakhstan than a 
mere reading of Wittfogel's category of "oriental despotism").

> Baker always referred to that
> Enlightenment heritage; 18th century federalism was his explicit model,

There must be an explicit citation you have in mind here and, without
challenging 
your veracity, I'd be interested to know where it comes from. Was Baker
serious 
when he said this or was it boilerplate from some speech? Or were his
speechwriters 
serious when they wrote it in? Was this from the good-old/bad-old "New World 
Order" days? 

Me, I can't find anything in Western cultural history better than the
Enlightenment; 
but I mourn its passing. Still, the values are great; it will be a fight to
project them 
beyond the now-closing era of their birth and flowering; yet I wonder whether 
there is a way to do this, other than to cogitate new bloc-based
power-politics 
on the global stage; for although that was the diplomatic history of the
era of the 
Enlightenment, and of the time of us its children, nevertheless that sort
of machination 
seems to run counter to Enlightenment values themselves, of which the
victory on 
their own merits must nevertheless not be assumed as a foregone conclusion
unless 
one subscribes to Kant's categorical imperative, which for all its
advantages is 
potentially as insidious blind Eurocentrism.

Robert M. Cutler
<rmc@alum.mit.edu>
<http://www.panix.com/~rmc>

********

#10
Opinion Poll on Moscow Living Standard 

Rossiyskiye Vesti 
2 December 1997
[translation for personal use only]
Opinion poll of Moscow residents conducted by Yelena Stepanchikova and
commentary by Yelena Ishkova: "Russians Indulging Themselves
More--Especially Those Courageous Enough To Change Some Aspect of
Their Lives"

"Do you believe that your family's well-being has improved over the
past year? And if so, how is this manifest?" Our correspondent posed these
questions to Moscow residents. Here are their responses.
Tatyana Zuyeva, maid: "I made a special point this year of changing my
work in the belief that my well-being would improve. I left my profession
as a teacher and became a maid. The pay I receive now is incomparably
greater than what I was earning in the teaching profession. I intend to buy
new furniture and a video cassette recorder in the very near future."
Anatoliy Gusev, chief of the securities division of a private firm:
"My family's prosperity is at about the same level it was last year. This
is a fairly high level. As we usually do, we went to the Baltic region this
summer on vacation. We bought a new washing machine. The rest is pretty
much the same. In my opinion, the middle class you hear so much about
today, including from the President, should be living this way. I would
categorize myself within this class by level of well-being, and I think
many people will soon cross this boundary."
Greb Serebryakov, advertising manager: "Our well-being has improved,
without a doubt. I have found higher-paying work. My salary has risen from
$450 to $900. Whereas I always used to feel in a somewhat needy position,
now I do not even think about this. More money brings new
opportunities--places to go, things to see. Generally speaking, I
don't reflect much about spending the money. I am not saving it, because it
has no intrinsic value. Its value lies in how it can enrich your life."
Yelena Kulbitskaya, scientific associate: "If my well-being has
improved, it is not due to my salary or the subsidy I receive for my child.
Our family's state of material well-being has gotten better thanks to the
efforts of my husband. He has been marvelous&mdash;he has been able to find
supplemental sources of earnings at just the right time. We have begun to
indulge ourselves in more diverse things. We eat better. But a lot of money
is spent on our child. He requires medicines from abroad, and they are not
cheap."
Sergey Sytov, engineer: "Everything is the same with us. But an
important role is played by the fact that I receive my salary on time. I do
not have any special material requirements, but I am able to provide for my
minimum needs&mdash;including good nourishment, summer vacation, and
interesting leisure activities. My income generally keeps up with
increasing prices, since prices are not rising all that much."
Mariya Aleksandrovskaya, storekeeper: "My well-being has improved.
Today I eat normally and am able to dress nicely. But you have to realize
what this has cost! Three years without a vacation. I cannot go to a
medical clinic no matter how bad I feel. I do not know how long I can keep
up this pace. True, I would not want to go back to being a geologist."
Irina Medvedeva, housewife: "My husband changed jobs this year. Prior
to this he was a military serviceman. He never received his pay on time.
And the money he did receive was not enough for our family. Now our lives
have improved significantly. We can purchase all kinds of delicacies and
travel abroad. Our child is not denied anything. Perhaps this is why we
have not yet managed to save any money."

Commentary

At the same time that our correspondent was conversing with
Muscovites, we visited the State Committee for Statistics and asked these
officials whether or not their data showed any enhancement of people's
well-being. We wanted to compare the views of state employees capable of
"improving" the indices with those of passers-by whose judgments would not
be so artful. It turns out that according to data of the State Committee
for Statistics, there was not only an increase in monetary per capita
income of the populace&mdash;presently amounting to 877,900 rubles
[R]--over the first 10 months of this year (by 16.7 percent), but an
increase in real disposable income as well. In other words, monetary income
taking into account the consumer price index. Whereas prior to 1996 this
index was diminishing, it froze in 1996 and increased by 1.6 percent in
1997. This is the first time we have seen such performance during the years
of reforms. The number of people with incomes lower than the subsistence
minimum dropped by 4.8 percent. Some 31.4 million people fall into this
category, i.e., 21.3 percent of all citizens. Last year this figure came to
22 percent. In addition, we have finally started to see a diminution of the
gap between the 10 percent most well-off Russians and the 10 percent least
well-off. This would hardly be possible without efforts on the part of the
government to pay pensions and the salaries of employees in the budget
sphere. The improvement in our lives is not just due to increased salaries.
Accelerated housing construction in 28 regions is also going to have an
effect on our state of well-being! And consider inflation, which barely
exceeds the 10-percent level. Then there is saturation of the market with
consumer goods, which has come quite close to 100 percent. The responses
given by Muscovites would seem to confirm that the Statistics Committee
officials are right.
But behind the general figures are sad individual examples. Buryat
teachers and doctors who have not received their salaries for seven months
did not get an opportunity to vacation abroad. Workers at the timber mill
near Arkhangelsk where railroad transportation had to be shut down were
unable to purchase washing machines or computers this year. Discussions
with the government will therefore take place, and they will be quite
serious.
But it is clear from the responses received from Muscovites that
people are becoming increasingly inclined to link the formula for improving
their lives not with the activity of officials, but with their own
readiness to change professions, jobs, or place of residence.

*******

#11
Yeltsin To Return To Work Friday
By GREG MYRE Associated Press Writer
18 December 1997
MOSCOW (AP) -- President Boris Yeltsin said today that he was leaving the
sanatorium where he's been recovering from a severe cold and would be back
at work Friday.
``I'm finishing my stay here,'' Yeltsin told Russian journalists at the
Barvikha Sanatorium on the western outskirts of Moscow. ``Tomorrow, I'll go
back to work.''
Yeltsin was hospitalized eight days ago with an acute viral respiratory
infection. It marked the third time in just over a year that he had been
hospitalized and again raised questions about his health.
He cut back his schedule while he was recuperating, canceling all public
events. But he continued working with documents and held occasional
meetings at the sanatorium.
The Russian president, whose remarks were carried by Russian news
agencies, said his illness was not related to the heart bypass surgery he
underwent 13 months ago.
``Everything is normal. My illness is not connected to any heart
problems,'' Yeltsin said. ``I indeed had a cold and there was a danger of
complications.''
The president denied the rumors that his illness was more serious than
the Kremlin said.
``You find these rumors among yourselves,'' Yeltsin told the journalists.
Yeltsin, who has been working several hours a day at the sanatorium,
said he would resume full-time work at the beginning of next year.
Yeltsin also planned to meet with his Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin
today, and deliver his regular nationwide radio address on Friday.
The president's schedule for January, including a planned visit to India
on Jan. 19-20, remains unchanged, officials said.
``Thank God, now he is better and he is working,'' Yeltsin's wife Naina
said Wednesday. ``However, we say he should (work) less, because he never
completes the treatment.''
Yeltsin, 66, suffered a mild heart attack just days before he was
re-elected to a second term in July 1996. He underwent heart bypass surgery
in November 1996 and then came down with double pneumonia this January.
He had resumed an active schedule, including regular working trips
aboard, before he was sidelined this month.
Yeltsin's term runs until 2000 and his doctors have said his overall
health is good following his bypass surgery.

*******

#12
Russian Speaker Angered By Clinton's Threat Over Start-2

MOSCOW, Dec 18 (Interfax) - Russian Duma Chairman *Gennady Seleznyov*
Thursday described as "challenging and outrageous" U.S. President Bill
Clinton's statement that he will come to Russia only after ratification of
the START-2 Treaty. 
Earlier, Clinton told the press that by agreement with Russian President
Boris Yeltsin, he will visit Russia on condition that the START-2 treaty is
ratified. Neither the date of Clinton' visit, nor the date of the treaty's
ratification by the Russian Duma has been fixed yet. 
Seleznyov at a press conference expressed indignation over the fact that
the American president "is imposing his terms on us." 
"Dealing this way with the world does not give anyone credit. I don't
think Russia will sob if he does not come," he said. 
"If Clinton continues to put pressure on Russia, the date of his visit
will never be set," Seleznyov said. 

*******

#13
Jamestown Foundation Monitor
18 December 1997

CHERNOMYRDIN REVERSES DECISION OF CHUBAIS. Prime Minister Viktor
Chernomyrdin yesterday reversed the decision, taken last week by the
Provisional Emergency Commission for Enforcing Tax Discipline, to seize the
property of two of Russia's largest tax laggards, the Omsk and Angarsk oil
refineries. Chernomyrdin's action is a blow to the prestige of First Deputy
Prime Minister Anatoly Chubais, since the decision to bankrupt the two
companies was taken at a meeting of the commission which Chubais chaired in
Chernomyrdin's absence last week. Chubais did not attend yesterday's meeting
since he is in India, making preparations for a visit by President Yeltsin
tentatively scheduled for late next month. ORT speculated that Chernomyrdin
was acting under pressure from the governor of Omsk Oblast, Leonid
Polezhaev, but it seems just as likely that the premier was seeking a public
way of taking Chubais down a peg. (ORT, December 17)

DOUBT CAST ON MOSCOW CITY DUMA ELECTIONS. The Russian State Duma yesterday
decided to investigate allegations that votes were rigged in last weekend's
elections to the Moscow City Duma. The investigation was called for by
parliamentary deputy Konstantin Borovoi. (ORT, December 17) Vyacheslav
Igrunov, head of the Moscow organization of Yabloko, told Radio Liberty when
the results were announced of his suspicions over the election. He said one
of Yabloko's candidates was leading in the counting until late at night when
the computer crashed; once it was working again, Yabloko's candidate
suddenly appeared in second place and was declared to have lost the
election. (Radio Liberty, December 15) However, the Duma has few powers in
type kind of case and it is unlikely that its investigation could change the
outcome.

ZHIRINOVSKY THREATENS BOYCOTT. Vladimir Zhirinovsky, leader of the Liberal
Democratic faction in the State Duma, announced yesterday that his faction
will boycott the Duma's proceedings from now until the end of the year.
Zhirinovsky said his faction is protesting against alleged vote-rigging,
which, he said, had caused the defeat of his Liberal Democratic Party in
recent regional legislative elections. He also complained that the Liberal
Democrats are not given enough attention in the new "Parliamentary Hour"
broadcasts on Russian TV. 

Zhirinovsky's threatened boycott could be a serious matter since, without
the Liberal Democrats' 50 votes, it might be impossible to muster the
necessary votes to get the revised 1998 federal budget approved by
parliament in the second reading. (The Yabloko faction has already announced
that the 16 members of its faction will vote against the present draft.)
(ORT, December 17) Zhirinovsky's threat comes on top of yesterday's decision
by the Duma to postpone debate on the draft 1998 federal budget until
December 24. The postponement will give the lower house time to study new
government proposals that would increase debt servicing provisions by 10
billion redenominated rubles ($1.7 billion) to reflect the higher interest
rates introduced during the recent turmoil on global financial markets.

LEBED/YAVLINSKY ELECTORAL BLOC EMERGES IN NOVOSIBIRSK. In anticipation of
the legislative elections that will be held in Novosibirsk Oblast on
December 21, local supporters of retired general Aleksandr Lebed's People's
Republican Party and Grigory Yavlinsky's Yabloko movement have agreed to
join forces and form a single bloc. In the run-up to last year's
presidential election Lebed and Yavlinsky conducted long but ultimately
unsuccessful negotiations over a single presidential candidate. This is the
first time their supporters have managed to agree on a united platform. Even
so, it may not significantly increase their chances of winning seats in
Novosibirsk, which is an established Communist stronghold. (Nezavisimaya
gazeta, December 18)

********

#14
PM: Army's Diversion of Wages "Disgraceful" 
Reuters
17 December 1997

MOSCOW -- Russian Prime Minister Victor Chernomyrdin said on Wednesday that
funds meant to pay overdue wages to the military were being diverted in a
"disgraceful" way, Itar-Tass news agency said. 
"It is not the first time, or the first defense minister with whom we
have spoken about this," Tass quoted Chernomyrdin as saying at a meeting of
the special emergency committee (VChK) charged with tightening up state
finances. 
"But in the future we will not allow such violations. Tough decisions
will be taken including possible personnel changes," Chernomyrdin said. 
Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev, who took over the post in May, said he
viewed the "squandering, embezzlement and wrong use of budget funds as
deliberate undermining of the military readiness of the armed forces," Tass
said. 
Tass gave no details of what had been done with the funds or how much
money had been diverted. 
Earlier this year President Boris Yeltsin instructed the government to
pay off overdue wages to military officers by the beginning of September. 
Sergeyev said on Sept. 1 that the government had carried out its
promise, transferring 7.7 trillion rubles (then $1.3 billion) to the
military to settle the wage debts. 

*******