When new Arab leaders in Egypt and Tunisia take office, they ought to learn from Russia’s corruption-plagued transition from the USSR. ++ They can avoid a similar fate by initiating the transparent privatization of state economic property, the modernization of commercial laws, and the opening of nearly every sector to foreign investment. ++ The economic and political vitality of the Arab
... More
The recent gas crisis is remarkably reminiscent of the Cold War in the sense of fear, insecurity and intimidation which it evoked. ++ Inciting such feelings in one’s adversaries is the typical obsession of a tyrannical regime. ++ Putin and Medvedev, presiding over a state which is at face value normal, are betraying the signs of such an obsession. ++ Modern-day Russians should steer well
... More
