Word: primakov
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When Boris Yeltsin was too sick to go on a state visit to Austria last week, Prime Minister Yevgeni Primakov quickly stepped in--in every sense of the word. Yeltsin's advancemen sketched out Primakov's arrival and departure; Yeltsin's chief of protocol arranged the state visits; and Yeltsin's personal interpreter did the German-to-Russian translating. The only things missing, a Moscow newspaper wagged, were Mrs. Yeltsin and a battery of doctors. Not to mention the gaffes, stumbles and truncated schedules. The Russian establishment reacted with relief. "It's so good to see the country represented...
...Primakov's ascent to the position of Russia's virtual President has been accomplished in the secretive style that has marked his whole career. He has always moved in the shadows, rising ever higher in the apparatus of state thanks to a reputation for diligence, loyalty and--crucial in a world of big egos--aversion to publicity. He has never been seen to lobby for a job but has carefully managed to be on hand when the powers that be were casting around for a candidate. He was a last-minute compromise candidate for the premiership last September when, after...
Since then Primakov has moved fast to consolidate his position. He has established good relations with Yeltsin's bitter enemies in the communist-dominated Duma, or lower house of parliament. But he has also become the President's most stalwart defender against a chorus of resignation calls. He is still, theoretically at least, dependent on Yeltsin, whose unpredictability is as notorious as his envy of any underling's success. But Primakov's power is growing daily, and despite his vociferous denials of presidential ambitions--the next scheduled elections are in 2000--he is increasingly seen as a front runner...
...face of it, this may be dismaying news to Americans. Primakov's stubborn, bluntly phrased opposition to U.S. policy in most parts of the world--from the Middle East to the gulf to the Balkans--has, after all, made him the bane of U.S. officials. In public, at least. In private, Primakov seems to have shown a little more flexibility. Diplomacy, he sometimes says, is a process of mutual concessions. He has been able to establish a good working relationship with U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. And officials at NATO, one of Primakov's least favorite organizations, say they...
...What Primakov seems to lack is any clear vision for Russia. He is a passionate believer in the need for a strong state and is insistent that Russia should be heard as an important voice in world affairs. Yet his handling of Russia's current economic pandemic has been slow, if not tentative. So far, strangely enough, this has not hurt him in the slightest. His popularity ratings keep going up: what Western bankers and the International Monetary Fund call distressing slowness, the Russian public views as refreshing caution...