Zhirinovsky's Russian Empire
- Thread starter Pellegrino
- Start date
I just think, maybe with new cold war around and Poland and Hungary in NATO USA will decide for something like "new Marshal Plan" for their new allies in Central Europe?
Former Warsaw Pact states economy and military should be in bad shape, and UIS proved in Yugoslavia and Romania to be serious military threat.
Former Warsaw Pact states economy and military should be in bad shape, and UIS proved in Yugoslavia and Romania to be serious military threat.
PART FIFTY: A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
PART FIFTY: A DEAL WITH THE DEVIL
“My Russia- An Autobiography by former Russian Prime Minister Gennady Burbulis”
Published by Interbook, © 1998
CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN
My driver turned around and looked at me with fear in his eyes as he asked me what we should do next. I couldn’t blame him; we both remembered what happened to those who opposed Vladimir Zhirinovsky in 1992. Many innocent Russians ended up dead, including many of my friends. My willingness to put my neck out had put a bull’s-eye on my back, and the image of protesters surrounding the Duma terrified us both. Could it be? Could Vladimir Zhirinovsky be doing it again? Is this his way of getting rid of those of us who didn’t share his twisted, warped view of Russia?
“I’ll walk from here,” I told him as my voice broke. “Go home Ivan, I’ll call you if I need anything.”
I saw a sense of relief on his face, quickly followed by desperation.
“Comrade Burbulis,” he said nervously, “let’s go back. I don’t like this at all, and I don’t think it is safe for you to walk through this…rabble.”
“Thank you Ivan,” I said with a forced smile, “but what sort of legislator would I be if I don’t show up for my own swearing in? I will go to the Duma and take my seat or I will die trying. But don’t worry. I have faith in the Russian people…I always have.”
I opened the door and walked out of the car into protests, hoping that no one would be so bold as to attack me…or recognize me. I slowly walked with my head down towards the Duma when I noticed something that gave me a sense of hope. The fascist chants that marked the riots of 1992…they were missing! Perhaps this is something different I whispered to myself. Perhaps I am overreacting. Suddenly I saw a young man ran past me waving the old flag of the USSR and screaming long live the Bolshevik Revolution! Long live Stalin! Death to Gorbachev!”
“What in the world?” I said to myself, “what the hell is going on here?”
I suddenly noticed Aleksandr Korzhakov walking in my direction with blood on his face. Aleksandr was voted in as a new legislator as well, and I could tell that he was coming back from the Duma.
“Aleksandr!” I screamed, “Aleksandr, it is Gennady!”
I saw Korzhakov look up and jog over towards me.
“Aleksandr, what in the world is going on? Who did this to you?”
“The outgoing Duma just held an emergency session and nullified the election results,” he said, “They are refusing to let us take our seats! It is a legislative coup!”
“That son of a bitch!” I screamed, “I knew Zhirinovsky would not give up the Duma without a fight, but does he honestly think we are going to sit back and let him get away with this?!”
I saw confusion in Korzhakov’s face as he looked at me before he regained his composure.
“Gennady, it is not the Liberal Democrats and Zhirinovsky that are trying to oust us,” he said, “It is Anatoly Lukyanov! He is trying to restore the Soviet Union! He is trying to bring back communism!”
Supporters of the UIS alongside supporters of the Communist Party outside the Russian Duma (January 2, 1994) (AP)
Communists move to restore USSR ahead of planned inauguration of democratically elected legislative body
December 30th, 1993
By Vincent J. Shanks,
Chicago Tribune.
MOSCOW — In a stunning move, hundreds of former communist lawmakers who abandoned the party in the days following the failed 1991 hard-line coup, have in similar fashion abandoned the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, the ultra-nationalistic party of Russian President Vladimir Zhirinovsky. The newly resurgent Communist Party now makes up the majority in the Federal Supreme Council, or Soviet as they demand it be referred to as, as well as the majority in the soon to be replaced Russian Duma.
“The UIS Supreme Soviet had most of their powers stripped over the last two years,” commented former Soviet ambassador Jack Matlock, “but with control of the UIS and Russian house, even if it is just for a few days, they can take steps to try and rejuvenate the Soviet Union. At the very least the Russian Duma could vote to delegate many of the powers that were stripped from the UIS Supreme Soviet back to that body, thus limiting the effectiveness of the one democratically elected parliamentary body in the UIS.”
There is already concern that the communists are looking to do just that. Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov promised supporters to “end the disastrous experiment of free market reform and democracy,” and has called for more members of the Liberal Democratic Party to abandon the “failed policies of Vladimir Zhirinovsky.”
BREAKING NEWS: Reports from Moscow are that UIS President Anatoly Lukyanov will announce that he will abandon the Liberal Democratic Party and to return to the Communist Party at a press conference tonight.
60 Minutes on CBS News - “The Madman of Moscow?” from March 13, 1994
Portions of a Mike Wallace interview with Valentin Pavlov, former Prime Minister of the Soviet Union.
Courtesy of CBS
Mike Wallace: Mr. Pavlov, the Constitutional Crisis of 1993 was widely seen as the last stand of the Communist Party in the UIS. Some have even called January 2, 1994 as the day the Soviet Coup of 1991 was finally repealed. Do you share that assessment?
Valentin Pavlov: Yes and no. The Communist Party had been lying dormant inside of the Liberal Democratic Party for two years, appalled at the mismanagement of Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his willingness to embrace free market reforms whenever it suited him. As the country was spiraling out of control, they decided to make their move.
Wallace: But in the end, all the Communist Party did was alienate ordinary Russians.
Pavlov: Once the communists began leaving the Liberal Democratic Party we discovered we now had a majority in both the Supreme Council of the UIS and the Russian Duma. We decided to move against the Yeltsinites and reformists, who may have hated Zhirinovsky but hated us with even more passion. That was our first mistake.
Wallace: What do you mean?
Pavlov: We didn’t want to directly challenge Zhirinovsky. He won the election, and even Mikhail Arutyunov and the UN conceded it was a fair election. We already saw what could happen if you turn Vladimir Zhirinovsky into a martyr. So we focused on the Duma, and trying to keep the reformists from taking over.
Wallace: By voting to outlaw the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia on January 2nd?
Pavlov: It was the first step out of many. We would keep the new Duma, or at least a majority of members of the new Duma, from being able to take their seats. That would give our comrades in the federal Supreme Council, or Supreme Soviet, time to consolidate power and restore the USSR.
Wallace: What went wrong with the plan in your opinion?
Pavlov: Several things. One, the military was hopelessly divided between those who supported us and those who supported the reformists and those who supported Zhirinovsky. But despite that, they were growing increasingly frustrated at the lack of action in Moscow in regards to Moldova, Georgia and Chechnya. We didn’t realize how much of an impact Georgia’s invasion of Russia had in the military. They wanted revenge and they were angry that nothing was being done other than infighting and bickering.
Wallace: So is that why the military opposed your attempted coup?
Pavlov: They supported the first person who told them to go in and fix the mess that the politicians had created in Moscow. And that person was Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
UIS Presidential Candidate Vladimir Putin in an interview with the BBC on August 1, 2011.
Discussing the 1993 UIS Constitutional Crisis.
BBC: What was the final straw that led the Committee to back Vladimir Zhirinovsky over Anatoly Lukyanov during the Constitutional Crisis?
Putin: We were willing to support whoever emerged from the crisis as long as they knew their place. Neither the communists nor the reformists, nor the Liberal Democrats planned to challenge the military and our role as the real power in the country. As a result we would have been happy with any of those factions. But once the communists overplayed their hand and tried to oust the democratically elected Duma, they turned much of the country against them. And we didn’t want to support a faction that angered and alienated the country like the communists had done. Besides, once Zhirinovsky and the reformists joined forces, it became a no-brainer. Three factions: one discredited, and two with valid election victories backing them. Once the two strongest factions joined forces it was a done deal. We backed them over the unpopular and discredited communists.
“My Russia- An Autobiography by former Russian Prime Minister Gennady Burbulis”
Published by Interbook, © 1998
CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN
By the time Aleksandr Korzhakov and I reached the Presidential Palace, we knew that time was running out. All over the country the country was moving to decapitate us. They were looking to destroy the reformist movement and restore totalitarianism. With UIS President Lukyanov declaring the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia illegal, he was already taking steps to purge us from the political sphere. I knew he could never be trusted, not after how he turned on his close friend Mikhail Gorbachev by supporting the 1991 coup, and then turning on those same hard line communists just days later when he backed Vladimir Zhirinovsky. But I still underestimated his ambition…or his ruthlessness. He was waiting for the opportunity to strike, and now it was here he was going to do what he dreamed of doing for over twenty five years: to become the new Stalin! Still, I couldn’t believe I was about to try and find an ally in the one man whom I hated more than Lukyanov. The one man who, I truly believed might be even more dangerous than Lukyanov. I was going to come back to the Presidential Palace with my hat in my hand and beg Vladimir Zhirinovsky for help.
“Comrades!” he said with a smile as he opened the door to the cabinet, “we were expecting you!”
I saw KGB Director Vladimir Putin and former Marshal of the UIS Alexander Lebed sitting at the table, as well as General Vyacheslav Tikhomirov, who was in charge of the military operation in Chechnya.
“We were just discussing military matters,” he said with a smile, “I think the 16-Man Committee for State Security and Defense has reached an agreement on how to address the military situation in Georgia, Moldova and Chechnya. Would you be interested in hearing about it? Oh, that’s right; you have an inauguration to go to.”
I felt my face turn red with anger. He was going to taunt me before throwing me out to the wolves.
“Mr. President,” I said through clenched teeth, “the communists refuse to let us take our seats. They are trying to launch a coup.”
“Is that so,” he said with mock surprise. “Oh dear. Pity. Well, I am sure you and your friends in the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia will be able to work this out.”
“Mr. President,” I said unable to hide the desperation in my voice, “once they are rid of reformists, what makes you think they won’t come after LDP? These are Stalinists we are talking about after all?”
Zhirinovsky shrugged his shoulders and turned his back to me as he looked at a map on the table. “I am not worried about the communists, I feel confident I can deal with them if it comes to that-“
“Mr. President,” I cried out, “Please! Regardless of if you want to admit it or not, and I assure you I am not happy about this myself, but we are in the same boat right now! We are in office because we were chosen by the people of Russia, and if the communists get their way we will suffer the same fate! We cannot bicker amongst ourselves at this hour!”
President Zhirinovsky lifted his head but didn’t turn around to face me.
“Comrade Burbulis,” he said firmly, “The Zhirinovsky Act. I want it!”
I felt my heart sink and I could see Aleksandr Korzhakov turn towards me with a look of absolute shock.
“No Gennady!” he said, “we can’t! We cannot give this man that sort of power! This is a deal with the devil!”
“What is the alternative?” I shot back, “give it to the communists? Give it to Lukyanov?”
“We have the people behind us!” he fired back, “they will support us if we call on them to go to the streets!”
“That’s a good idea!” Zhirinovsky said as he turned and faced Korzhakov. “Perhaps I should call on my supporters to do the same….after all, we all saw what happened the last time they came out on the streets to support me. Yes, let’s do that! It will be 1992 all over again!”
I saw Korzhakov slump down into a chair; he knew we had no options left.
“Fine,” I said, barely above a whisper, “the Zhirinovsky Act stays.”
“Excellent,” Zhirinovsky said as he walked over towards me, “I expect you to hold a press conference within the hour to say as much. Oh, and to say you are returning to the Liberal Democratic Party and plan to form a coalition government with us.”
I felt myself getting sick. With the Liberal Democrats now a minority in the Duma he was going to use my name to revitalize the party; to give it a second life. He was going to use me as a front man to ensure that the Duma didn’t stray too far away from his sick, twisted plans.
“Fine,” I mumbled.
“Excellent,” Zhirinovsky said with a hearty laugh, “now Gennady, I really hope this is the last time we have to fight. I have tremendous faith in you, I always have. That’s why I didn’t have you killed when I had the chance back in 1992. I believe in you, just like I believed in President Lukyanov. But he burned me, and I hate to see our relationship end that way. I hate to see you suffer the same fate as him.”
Zhirinovsky then turned to General Tikhomirov; the man he hand-picked to replace General Ivanenko on the 16-man Committee.
“General,” he said.
“Yes Mr. President,” the General yelled as he jumped out of the chair he was sitting in, “what are your orders, sir!”
“The communists,” Zhirinovsky said coldly, “Get rid of them. Kill them all.”
The General stood at attention and yelled “I serve the Union of Independent States!” before moving towards the door.
I was paralyzed with disgust. Could this really be better than the alternative? Suddenly I saw all eyes on Korzhakov and myself. Korzhakov was oblivious, his face in his hands, trying to hide his tears. But I knew I could not pretend I didn’t know what was expected of me. I could see the eyes of everyone in the room burning into me.
“I serve the Union of Independent States,” I managed to spit out.
“My Russia- An Autobiography by former Russian Prime Minister Gennady Burbulis”
Published by Interbook, © 1998
CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN
My driver turned around and looked at me with fear in his eyes as he asked me what we should do next. I couldn’t blame him; we both remembered what happened to those who opposed Vladimir Zhirinovsky in 1992. Many innocent Russians ended up dead, including many of my friends. My willingness to put my neck out had put a bull’s-eye on my back, and the image of protesters surrounding the Duma terrified us both. Could it be? Could Vladimir Zhirinovsky be doing it again? Is this his way of getting rid of those of us who didn’t share his twisted, warped view of Russia?
“I’ll walk from here,” I told him as my voice broke. “Go home Ivan, I’ll call you if I need anything.”
I saw a sense of relief on his face, quickly followed by desperation.
“Comrade Burbulis,” he said nervously, “let’s go back. I don’t like this at all, and I don’t think it is safe for you to walk through this…rabble.”
“Thank you Ivan,” I said with a forced smile, “but what sort of legislator would I be if I don’t show up for my own swearing in? I will go to the Duma and take my seat or I will die trying. But don’t worry. I have faith in the Russian people…I always have.”
I opened the door and walked out of the car into protests, hoping that no one would be so bold as to attack me…or recognize me. I slowly walked with my head down towards the Duma when I noticed something that gave me a sense of hope. The fascist chants that marked the riots of 1992…they were missing! Perhaps this is something different I whispered to myself. Perhaps I am overreacting. Suddenly I saw a young man ran past me waving the old flag of the USSR and screaming long live the Bolshevik Revolution! Long live Stalin! Death to Gorbachev!”
“What in the world?” I said to myself, “what the hell is going on here?”
I suddenly noticed Aleksandr Korzhakov walking in my direction with blood on his face. Aleksandr was voted in as a new legislator as well, and I could tell that he was coming back from the Duma.
“Aleksandr!” I screamed, “Aleksandr, it is Gennady!”
I saw Korzhakov look up and jog over towards me.
“Aleksandr, what in the world is going on? Who did this to you?”
“The outgoing Duma just held an emergency session and nullified the election results,” he said, “They are refusing to let us take our seats! It is a legislative coup!”
“That son of a bitch!” I screamed, “I knew Zhirinovsky would not give up the Duma without a fight, but does he honestly think we are going to sit back and let him get away with this?!”
I saw confusion in Korzhakov’s face as he looked at me before he regained his composure.
“Gennady, it is not the Liberal Democrats and Zhirinovsky that are trying to oust us,” he said, “It is Anatoly Lukyanov! He is trying to restore the Soviet Union! He is trying to bring back communism!”
Supporters of the UIS alongside supporters of the Communist Party outside the Russian Duma (January 2, 1994) (AP)
Communists move to restore USSR ahead of planned inauguration of democratically elected legislative body
December 30th, 1993
By Vincent J. Shanks,
Chicago Tribune.
MOSCOW — In a stunning move, hundreds of former communist lawmakers who abandoned the party in the days following the failed 1991 hard-line coup, have in similar fashion abandoned the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, the ultra-nationalistic party of Russian President Vladimir Zhirinovsky. The newly resurgent Communist Party now makes up the majority in the Federal Supreme Council, or Soviet as they demand it be referred to as, as well as the majority in the soon to be replaced Russian Duma.
“The UIS Supreme Soviet had most of their powers stripped over the last two years,” commented former Soviet ambassador Jack Matlock, “but with control of the UIS and Russian house, even if it is just for a few days, they can take steps to try and rejuvenate the Soviet Union. At the very least the Russian Duma could vote to delegate many of the powers that were stripped from the UIS Supreme Soviet back to that body, thus limiting the effectiveness of the one democratically elected parliamentary body in the UIS.”
There is already concern that the communists are looking to do just that. Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov promised supporters to “end the disastrous experiment of free market reform and democracy,” and has called for more members of the Liberal Democratic Party to abandon the “failed policies of Vladimir Zhirinovsky.”
BREAKING NEWS: Reports from Moscow are that UIS President Anatoly Lukyanov will announce that he will abandon the Liberal Democratic Party and to return to the Communist Party at a press conference tonight.
60 Minutes on CBS News - “The Madman of Moscow?” from March 13, 1994
Portions of a Mike Wallace interview with Valentin Pavlov, former Prime Minister of the Soviet Union.
Courtesy of CBS
Mike Wallace: Mr. Pavlov, the Constitutional Crisis of 1993 was widely seen as the last stand of the Communist Party in the UIS. Some have even called January 2, 1994 as the day the Soviet Coup of 1991 was finally repealed. Do you share that assessment?
Valentin Pavlov: Yes and no. The Communist Party had been lying dormant inside of the Liberal Democratic Party for two years, appalled at the mismanagement of Vladimir Zhirinovsky and his willingness to embrace free market reforms whenever it suited him. As the country was spiraling out of control, they decided to make their move.
Wallace: But in the end, all the Communist Party did was alienate ordinary Russians.
Pavlov: Once the communists began leaving the Liberal Democratic Party we discovered we now had a majority in both the Supreme Council of the UIS and the Russian Duma. We decided to move against the Yeltsinites and reformists, who may have hated Zhirinovsky but hated us with even more passion. That was our first mistake.
Wallace: What do you mean?
Pavlov: We didn’t want to directly challenge Zhirinovsky. He won the election, and even Mikhail Arutyunov and the UN conceded it was a fair election. We already saw what could happen if you turn Vladimir Zhirinovsky into a martyr. So we focused on the Duma, and trying to keep the reformists from taking over.
Wallace: By voting to outlaw the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia on January 2nd?
Pavlov: It was the first step out of many. We would keep the new Duma, or at least a majority of members of the new Duma, from being able to take their seats. That would give our comrades in the federal Supreme Council, or Supreme Soviet, time to consolidate power and restore the USSR.
Wallace: What went wrong with the plan in your opinion?
Pavlov: Several things. One, the military was hopelessly divided between those who supported us and those who supported the reformists and those who supported Zhirinovsky. But despite that, they were growing increasingly frustrated at the lack of action in Moscow in regards to Moldova, Georgia and Chechnya. We didn’t realize how much of an impact Georgia’s invasion of Russia had in the military. They wanted revenge and they were angry that nothing was being done other than infighting and bickering.
Wallace: So is that why the military opposed your attempted coup?
Pavlov: They supported the first person who told them to go in and fix the mess that the politicians had created in Moscow. And that person was Vladimir Zhirinovsky.
UIS Presidential Candidate Vladimir Putin in an interview with the BBC on August 1, 2011.
Discussing the 1993 UIS Constitutional Crisis.
BBC: What was the final straw that led the Committee to back Vladimir Zhirinovsky over Anatoly Lukyanov during the Constitutional Crisis?
Putin: We were willing to support whoever emerged from the crisis as long as they knew their place. Neither the communists nor the reformists, nor the Liberal Democrats planned to challenge the military and our role as the real power in the country. As a result we would have been happy with any of those factions. But once the communists overplayed their hand and tried to oust the democratically elected Duma, they turned much of the country against them. And we didn’t want to support a faction that angered and alienated the country like the communists had done. Besides, once Zhirinovsky and the reformists joined forces, it became a no-brainer. Three factions: one discredited, and two with valid election victories backing them. Once the two strongest factions joined forces it was a done deal. We backed them over the unpopular and discredited communists.
“My Russia- An Autobiography by former Russian Prime Minister Gennady Burbulis”
Published by Interbook, © 1998
CHAPTER FIFTY SEVEN
By the time Aleksandr Korzhakov and I reached the Presidential Palace, we knew that time was running out. All over the country the country was moving to decapitate us. They were looking to destroy the reformist movement and restore totalitarianism. With UIS President Lukyanov declaring the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia illegal, he was already taking steps to purge us from the political sphere. I knew he could never be trusted, not after how he turned on his close friend Mikhail Gorbachev by supporting the 1991 coup, and then turning on those same hard line communists just days later when he backed Vladimir Zhirinovsky. But I still underestimated his ambition…or his ruthlessness. He was waiting for the opportunity to strike, and now it was here he was going to do what he dreamed of doing for over twenty five years: to become the new Stalin! Still, I couldn’t believe I was about to try and find an ally in the one man whom I hated more than Lukyanov. The one man who, I truly believed might be even more dangerous than Lukyanov. I was going to come back to the Presidential Palace with my hat in my hand and beg Vladimir Zhirinovsky for help.
“Comrades!” he said with a smile as he opened the door to the cabinet, “we were expecting you!”
I saw KGB Director Vladimir Putin and former Marshal of the UIS Alexander Lebed sitting at the table, as well as General Vyacheslav Tikhomirov, who was in charge of the military operation in Chechnya.
“We were just discussing military matters,” he said with a smile, “I think the 16-Man Committee for State Security and Defense has reached an agreement on how to address the military situation in Georgia, Moldova and Chechnya. Would you be interested in hearing about it? Oh, that’s right; you have an inauguration to go to.”
I felt my face turn red with anger. He was going to taunt me before throwing me out to the wolves.
“Mr. President,” I said through clenched teeth, “the communists refuse to let us take our seats. They are trying to launch a coup.”
“Is that so,” he said with mock surprise. “Oh dear. Pity. Well, I am sure you and your friends in the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia will be able to work this out.”
“Mr. President,” I said unable to hide the desperation in my voice, “once they are rid of reformists, what makes you think they won’t come after LDP? These are Stalinists we are talking about after all?”
Zhirinovsky shrugged his shoulders and turned his back to me as he looked at a map on the table. “I am not worried about the communists, I feel confident I can deal with them if it comes to that-“
“Mr. President,” I cried out, “Please! Regardless of if you want to admit it or not, and I assure you I am not happy about this myself, but we are in the same boat right now! We are in office because we were chosen by the people of Russia, and if the communists get their way we will suffer the same fate! We cannot bicker amongst ourselves at this hour!”
President Zhirinovsky lifted his head but didn’t turn around to face me.
“Comrade Burbulis,” he said firmly, “The Zhirinovsky Act. I want it!”
I felt my heart sink and I could see Aleksandr Korzhakov turn towards me with a look of absolute shock.
“No Gennady!” he said, “we can’t! We cannot give this man that sort of power! This is a deal with the devil!”
“What is the alternative?” I shot back, “give it to the communists? Give it to Lukyanov?”
“We have the people behind us!” he fired back, “they will support us if we call on them to go to the streets!”
“That’s a good idea!” Zhirinovsky said as he turned and faced Korzhakov. “Perhaps I should call on my supporters to do the same….after all, we all saw what happened the last time they came out on the streets to support me. Yes, let’s do that! It will be 1992 all over again!”
I saw Korzhakov slump down into a chair; he knew we had no options left.
“Fine,” I said, barely above a whisper, “the Zhirinovsky Act stays.”
“Excellent,” Zhirinovsky said as he walked over towards me, “I expect you to hold a press conference within the hour to say as much. Oh, and to say you are returning to the Liberal Democratic Party and plan to form a coalition government with us.”
I felt myself getting sick. With the Liberal Democrats now a minority in the Duma he was going to use my name to revitalize the party; to give it a second life. He was going to use me as a front man to ensure that the Duma didn’t stray too far away from his sick, twisted plans.
“Fine,” I mumbled.
“Excellent,” Zhirinovsky said with a hearty laugh, “now Gennady, I really hope this is the last time we have to fight. I have tremendous faith in you, I always have. That’s why I didn’t have you killed when I had the chance back in 1992. I believe in you, just like I believed in President Lukyanov. But he burned me, and I hate to see our relationship end that way. I hate to see you suffer the same fate as him.”
Zhirinovsky then turned to General Tikhomirov; the man he hand-picked to replace General Ivanenko on the 16-man Committee.
“General,” he said.
“Yes Mr. President,” the General yelled as he jumped out of the chair he was sitting in, “what are your orders, sir!”
“The communists,” Zhirinovsky said coldly, “Get rid of them. Kill them all.”
The General stood at attention and yelled “I serve the Union of Independent States!” before moving towards the door.
I was paralyzed with disgust. Could this really be better than the alternative? Suddenly I saw all eyes on Korzhakov and myself. Korzhakov was oblivious, his face in his hands, trying to hide his tears. But I knew I could not pretend I didn’t know what was expected of me. I could see the eyes of everyone in the room burning into me.
“I serve the Union of Independent States,” I managed to spit out.
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MarshalBraginsky
Banned
Man, Zhirinovsky must have gone on a political roller coaster ride in this one. I guess the West will be confused as to whether or not they should support the resurgent Communist or the unpredictable LDPR.
The interesting thing is the west supported Mikhail Arutyanov and the Party for a Free and Democratic Russia, he loses a very close election to Zhirinovsky though.
Then we see the Communist make a comeback.
Then we see the reformist, whom the west supported (possibly including Arutyanov) join forces with Zhirinovsky in opposition to the Communist.
You have to imagine the sanctions are going to emerge even weaker after this (although I doubt Germany or Britian or the US will back their removal, but a lot of other countries may decide to)
Which, if the military was alway in control of things might just have been the plan all along...
Well, from what we can tell the Military is about to do some pretty shady things in Chechnya, sure would be convenient to say we had no choice. After all, we were ruled by a "you-know-who"
MarshalBraginsky
Banned
Most likely they'll meet a sad end. When you mentioned something about one of the UIS's generals becoming the CEO of YUKOS, does this mean that Mikhail Khordokovsky will not become prominent?
A purge...but what sort of purge. We see that Zyuganov is still around in 1996 and runs for President. Perhaps the biggest problem for Zhirinovsky is not with Communist, but with UIS President Lukyanov, whom he feels betrayed him and is seen as a direct threat to him, unlike Zyuganov. Or perhpas the Communist quickly come back in the fold once they see this show of force from Zhirinovsky, much like Death Eaters once they see the Dark Mark (sorry, I just got done reading some ASB posts on Harry Potter)
General Ivanenko was the CEO of Yukos in OTL, and was eventually replaced by Khordokovsky. Hard to know what role Khordokovsky will play in TTL, but there is a good chance that since Ivanenko is so tight with the government here he may still emerge once Ivankeno is targeted for being the man who "put Zhirinovsky in charge"
Not sure yet. I was assuming he may be butterflied out of this TL, but you know he would be a front runner to take over Yukos when Ivanenko gets ousted. He is not too tied to Zhirinovsky, but at the same time still has the connections to emerge as head of Yukos (as we saw in OTL). Not sure what role he will play, but a lot of it we won't know since if he emerges, it is likely to take place after this TL ends in 2003.
Perhaps if this TL spawns a Protect and Survive like spinoff we can see what happens to Khordokovsky in Lebed's UIS
MarshalBraginsky
Banned
I'm thinking that the UIS will be worse off under Lebed. Then hopefully the UIS can become a first rate great power once again.
I saw that, THANK YOU!
I can see that this is a very, very tough category though. I am currently trailing the Objectivist Katanga TL (which, although I have not finished, is a great TL from what I read so far) and the Iran Contra TL. I am humbled, however, to be nominated and to be "in the race" if you will.
And you guys have 10 more days to vote if you have not yet voted!
Not necessarily.
Lebed takes over in 2003, after sanctions have ended and federal control has been restored all over the country (including Georgia and central Asia). And he does act with a lot more reason than Zhirinovsky. He was often compared in OTL to Chile's dictator Augusto Pinochet, and I think his reign would be somewhat similar to his. It would be bad in a lot of respects, but even Pinochet's critics admit that the country did grow economically under his rule. But his assault on civil liberties was hard to overlook. The question is what happens to Lebed if he cracks down on civil liberties like Pinochet did.
