Should We Save Gorbachev?

the debate in Western financial circles about the prospects of perestroika has been largely dominated by George Soros, president of Soros Fund Management in New York. Soros brings to the task redoubtable credentials—detailed experience, gained from his role as organizer of an international task force, under the aegis of Prime Minister Nikolai Ryzhkov, to study the establishment of an “open sector” within the Soviet economy; a comprehensive grasp of Western economies; and a record of rare business success.

When such a knight enters the lists, the rest are tempted to leave the field without a challenge. Yet his conclusion that the future of perestroika lies essentially in Western hands is unconvincing. Soros argues that while the imminent collapse of the Soviet economy and the threatened disintegration of the Soviet Union may soon force Gorbachev to resign, catastrophe can yet be avoided if the U.S. is prepared to come to the rescue with loans to stabilize the ruble. Soros quantifies the cost of this stabilization at $25 billion.

RL

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Rodney Leach

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the debate in Western financial circles about the prospects of perestroika has been largely dominated by George Soros, president of Soros Fund Management in New York. Soros brings to the task redoubtable credentials—detailed experience, gained from his role as organizer of an international task force, under the aegis of Prime Minister Nikolai Ryzhkov, to study the establishment of an “open sector” within the Soviet economy; a comprehensive grasp of Western economies; and a record of rare business success.

When such a knight enters the lists, the rest are tempted to leave the field without a challenge. Yet his conclusion that the future of perestroika lies essentially in Western hands is unconvincing. Soros argues that while the imminent collapse of the Soviet economy and the threatened disintegration of the Soviet Union may soon force Gorbachev to resign, catastrophe can yet be avoided if the U.S. is prepared to come to the rescue with loans to stabilize the ruble. Soros quantifies the cost of this stabilization at $25 billion.