What Should America Do? : The United States retains a substantial influence in Russia and can have a signficant impact on economic and political reform there. From: World and I | Date: December 1, 2001| Author: BJORKMAN, TOM | COPYRIGHT 2001 News World Communications, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan.  All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group.Copyright information

Russia made dramatic progress toward a democratic order in the last years of the USSR and in the first years of an independent Russia. The 1993 constitution established a strong legal framework for democracy. Under former Soviet President Mikail Gorbachev and Russian President Boris Yeltsin, Russia adopted a series of laws that fleshed out the formal framework for a fully functioning democratic state. Regularly scheduled competitive elections are now accepted as the only legitimate ...