The Selling of the Soviet Empire: Politics & Economics of Russia's Privatization-Revelations of the Principal Insider

The success of Russia's epochal transition to private enterprise rode on the shoulders of a few courageous men. Dr. Alfred Kokh and his team had to divide the wealth of the all-powerful Soviet Union. The opposition from politicians (especially the still-potent Communists), old-style factory managers and organized crime figures was immense and life-threatening. Fortunately, Kokh remained in the crosshairs of his country's economic turn-around long enough to make privatization of government assets a rousing success, thereby eliminating the economic sector that was the backbone of Communist support. Dr. Kokh was appointed by President Yeltsin in 1997 to the post of Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation in addition to his position as Chairman of the Russian Federation's State Committee of State Property. Although he has stepped down from his political positions, ho remains in the vortex of the controversy. His privatization of major companies upset many powerful...