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Strategies & Market Trends : Investment in Russia and Eastern Europe -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Rob Shilling who wrote (506)	8/23/1998 11:42:00 PM
From: djane	Respond to of 1301

Russia's Chernomyrdin again proves unsinkable [Last 2 paragraphs are interesting -- could be grounds for an RTS rally. Sounds like a strong leader this time.] Sunday August 23, 2:54 pm Eastern Time By Oleg Shchedrov MOSCOW, Aug 23 (Reuters) - Viktor Chernomyrdin again proved his reputation of being ''unsinkable'' on Sunday when President Boris Yeltsin put him back in charge of Russia's government, exactly five months after sacking him as prime minister. Yeltsin removed Sergei Kiriyenko, who had in effect devalued the rouble and defaulted on some Russian debt as prime minister, and named Chernomyrdin, 60, as acting premier. ''We have no government today,'' Chernomyrdin said last week as he held a flurry of secret consultations with other political leaders. ''Measures that should be taken are not being taken or even proposed. All that is being proposed is all muddled. Nothing is being done.'' In 1992 Yeltsin made Chernomyrdin his prime minister to replace the reformist Yegor Gaidar, launching the stocky, low-profile former chief of the powerful Gazprom natural gas monopoly into high-profile public politics. Chernomyrdin loyally stood by Yeltsin through political and economic turmoil, outlasting many of his allies and foes. ''Loyalty to Yeltsin is his shield and his insurance,'' one Kremlin official said about Chernomyrdin's ability to survive. In November 1996, Yeltsin handed Chernomyrdin the reins of power for one day when he had heart surgery in a sign of trust in the prime minister. Loyalty to Yeltsin helped Chernomyrdin survive several major government reshuffles, including after a brief but dramatic crash in the rouble's value in October 1994 which forced out several cabinet colleagues. Chernomyrdin's time seemed to be running out in March 1997 when Yeltsin named young reformers Boris Nemtsov and Anatoly Chubais as first deputy prime ministers to oversee reforms. But Chernomyrdin bore the humiliation calmy and waited. By early 1998, Chernomyrdin was again as powerful as ever. When Russia's economy started to wobble in late 1997 under the pressure of a global crisis sparked by turmoil in Asian financial markets, Chernomyrdin again rode the storm. But his traditional unsinkability seemed to have failed him a few months later. On March 23 Yeltsin sacked him without explanation, replacing him with Kiriyenko. Yeltsin later said the sacking was due to Chernomyrdin's lack of reformist stamina. But some Kremlin sources said the growing political weight of the premier was the real reason. Yeltsin, they said, feared Chernomyrdin had become too powerful. Chernomyrdin, abandoned by the Kremlin chief, announced plans to run for president in 2000, revealing an ambition he had long denied he harboured. Many commentators predicted that Chernomyrdin, who has little charisma and often mumbles when speaking in public, had almost no chance of winnming an election without the support of the Kremlin. Some sentenced him to political oblivion. Chernomyrdin announced plans to run for a place in the lower house of parliament to occupy him until 2000, representing the centrist party Our Home is Russia movement which he heads. It has about 10 percent of seats in the lower house. By calling back Chernomyrdin, Yeltsin has acknowledged the usefulness of his veteran ally, who is widely expected to remain as permanent prime minister and is likely to seek more independence than Kiriyenko had. Ekho Moskvy radio station quoted sources in Chernomyrdin's entourage as saying the condition for his comeback was full control over hiring and firing ministers. It said he also wanted Yeltsin to have no involvement in day-to-day management of the government. The report could not immediately be confirmed. Related News Categories: international Help Copyright c 1998 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon See our Important Disclaimers and Legal Information. Questions or Comments?