The Selling of the Soviet Empire: Politics and Economics of Russia's Privatization

Here, for the first time, is the story of one of the central figures in the creation of the "New Russia." Alfred Kokh was one of Boris Yeltsin's Deputy Prime Minister and privatization chiefs before he was forced out in the intense media war that erupted in the wake of the privatization of the state telecommunications industry. This book tells the exclusive story of how Kokh and his associates worked to divide the wealth of the most vast empire ever.

Never before has there been an attempt to transform a massive state-owned economy into a dynamic free market system. The story of the conversion of the dinosaur Marxist Soviet state into the free-wheeling capitalist society of the Russian Federation is one of the most compelling dramas in history. This tale includes violence, corruption, and a web of political conspiracy. It is a true-life economic-political thriller.

Who are the new Russian financial magnates who are grabbing former state property? What were the terms of disposing of the state's immense wealth to private investors? What was the role of American financiers? These questions, and more, are answered here.

In addition to what he saw with his own eyes (in the crucial period between 1994 and 1997), Kokh also paints vivid pictures of the influential decision-makers that he worked with. The author was particularly close to Anatoly Chubals, the little known Kremlin kingpin who ran Boris Yeltsin's re-election campaign and served as both Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister. The author candidly describes this man as he saw him. Kokh uses his expert knowledge of the Russian government to bring the reader into the momentous meetings that changed the world.