It remains to be seen whether Russia will be successful in converting to a capitalistic and democratic society. Since 1989, Russia has slowly deteriorated into a country in great crises. The GDP has decreased at about a 9% per year since 1990 and more and more Russians are going into poverty every year. This is a big problem, Russia is still a nuclear power, and we do not want them to get in a situation where they feel they must lash out. The country has so much potential, only the United States rivals Russia in natural resources. In many ways, Russia is making progress; the citizens do have more freedom now than at any time in their history. It is unfortunate that the vast majority of the Russians cannot enjoy this freedom.

It is in both the World's and the United State's best interest that Russia becomes economically stable and prosperous. The United States should do whatever it can to help Russia achieve these goals. For that to happen, The US may have to accept that their initial recommendations to the Russians have failed. Over the years, the Russian people have come to distrust the intentions of the American Government. Though our

Reddaway also mentions the belief that there is no rule of law in Russia and that the laws are used to benefit the elite but not the average citizen. He also talks about government corruption substituting for the rule of law. In fact one government official said the corruptions is an important social function in Russia and that nothing could get done without it. Reddaway talks about the Governments Non-Accountability; the fact that many workers are not getting paid despite all the IMF loans. This is happening while the top 5-10 percent of the population is living a life of luxury and excess. Many Russians believe that the elite view ordinary citizens as only a nuisance. So in retrospect, Reddaway has some legitimate points in his beliefs.

` The third area of progress Sestanovich mentions is the US -Russia Economic Relationship. He points out the progress Russia has made in converting to a market economy. Currently 70 percent of the GDP is produced by the private sector. He said that Russia joined the Paris Club as a creditor member and had been invited to join the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Sestanovich points out that progress in Russia whether good or bad will move slowly because this is still new to the Russian people.

The second area where Sestanovich cites Russian progress is in the area of Democracy, Human Rights, and Religious Freedom. He points out that in 1997, Russia passed a potentially discriminative law concerning religion. It required that a new religion must wait 15 years after registering before receiving basic legal rights. Action was quickly taken to negate this law. He points out that Russia has initiated programs to support free and fair elections, the development of independent media, and the promotion of accountable and responsive municipal governments. These are important factors in building a democratic society.

Stephen Sestanovich made an effective argument for being optimistic about Russi

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