Word: kremlinologists
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
Columbia University Kremlinologist Seweryn Bialer was in Moscow just before Chernenko's death. "The most overwhelming impression," he says, "was one of gloom. It was the gloom that accompanies the paralysis of leadership. Even before Gorbachev was selected, there was already a cult of personality around him, the hope that he would be able to get the Soviet Union moving again and to keep it moving. In my opinion, that was as important a factor in his quick victory as the votes of loyalty that he got from the Politburo. It was a question of the mood of the elite...
...former chief of the Soviet intelligence services remained the shadowy figure he had always been. Andropov, throughout his life, never traveled to the West and was seen only from afar at Kremlin ceremonies. Gorbachev, in contrast, is responsible for creating his own image abroad. He has what one Washington Kremlinologist calls "a real sense of public relations...
...still an enigma, enveloped in nearly 70 years of Bolshevik devotion to intrigue and secrecy. As far as experts can tell, a tiny handful of powerful Politburo members, perhaps as few as five or six, and usually only those based in Moscow, normally control the process. Says a Kremlinologist at the U.S. State Department: "There are no votes taken. They palaver until the consensus is reached." In the final hours of the decision, the military and the KGB may become more influential, as they < were in helping to swing the balance in favor of Andropov. There is no guarantee, however...
...Kremlin's many frustrations will make either its present or its future leaders any easier for the U.S. to deal with. The effect could be exactly the opposite. In any case, the U.S. has little leverage that it can exert. Speaking of the Soviet leadership jockeying, Helmut Sonnenfeldt, a Kremlinologist at Washington's Brookings Institution, says bluntly, "There is nothing the U.S. can do about this...
...gripped Europe might have worsened his condition at a time when disagreements among pact members require vigorous diplomacy. The treaty that established the alliance is up for renewal, and Hungary and Rumania are known to oppose Moscow's desire to extend the agreement in perpetuity. Said a State Department Kremlinologist: "You don't conquer recalcitrant allies from a wheelchair...