23/04/2007 5:10:22 pm
A Timely Sign: The Man Who Directed Russia Towards Democracy Dead. The demise of Boris Yeltsin can be seen as a symbol of the development in Russia. In very critical times, as the Soviet Union fell apart, he became a leader towards democracy and capitalism. During Vladimir Putin, however, the former has been increasingly replaced by authoritarian rule. And capitalism doesn′t benefit from the corruption, oligarchs or harrassment of people like Mikhail Khodorkovsky. People here in the US who know Russia are very pessimistic indeed. Some fear a sort of collapse of the regime before the next elections.