Russia

Question 1

Russia’s transition to capitalism did not go as planned. What went wrong?

Answer

It began when Boris Yelstin, who took over in 1991, resigned. After, he appointed Vladimir Putin as acting president. He was elected by the people three months later in March 2000. No one expected a man unschooled in politics and so bland in personality and appearance to seize the Russians' imagination (Wines, 2000). One of Putin’s first priorities was to remove the poverty problem facing the country. He tried to hire bright minds to help him fix the situation. He brought in foreign advisors to form a committee so they would develop strategies that would benefit Russia.

One of the major problems facing Russia was a rising level of income inequality in the early 1990’s. It almost doubled all the way up to 48 percent. Because of that, Putin made solving that problem one of his top priorities. His sought help from his advisors to provide with him with some solutions, but it proved to be difficult, because Putin faced much opposition from within his own country. There were many in Russia who still supported communism, despite the damage it had done to their country and economy.

Before Putin, there was Boris Yeltsin. He was elected President of Russia. He didn’t want to save the economic system. Instead, he sought to destroy it. Putin’s advisors suggest that he transform the country from a communist system to a capitalist system. If he did that, businesses in Russia can run their business the way they think its best. People will work harder to make more money. They will strive to grow their business, and that will lead to a better economy. With capitalism, people will work harder and be able to recover. As a result, this should cause an increase in the low GDP left behind by Yeltsin.

Vladimir Putin wanted to increase the amount of goods produced in Russia. If he did that, they could export more products and goods, and as a result, trade and exports would go up. That...